Hollow Inside
by LuminaWriting
Summary: TEMPORARY HIATUS! When Harry goes through his magical inheritance on his sixteenth birthday, something unusual happens. He will have to cope with the changes that come from becoming a magical creature only known in myth and learning how to wield his powers. New allies will come forward and old ones will have to prove that friendship truly is stronger than prejudice.
1. Magical Inheritance

**A/N: Hello everyone and welcome to my new crossover _Hollow Inside_. I had this chapter lying around and was satisfied with it so I figured I might as well post it already. The rest of the story may be updated semi-slowly depending on my inspiration and all that. I do actually have the entire story planned out already for once actually so I might not have to struggle with mistakes or the flow as much here. **

**Thanks you all in advance for reading and I hope you like it!**

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Thank heavens for Hermione.

Just before they set off to return home after their fifth year, Hermione had warned him that on their sixteenth birthday, each witch and wizard went though his or her magical inheritance. It was a gift from their magic, growing into maturity and unlocking possible hidden skills as well as removing the natural barriers on one's magic. Any creature inheritances were released as well and the witch or wizard was given the chance to get used to their new powers and skills before they were emancipated on their seventeenth birthday. It was the first step to being recognised as an adult, not by people but by magic itself.

Because he now knew this, he also knew dawdling about was a bad idea. He opened the window so that any owls with birthday packages could enter and laid down on his bed, ready to take on whatever would happen. He tried not to see Sirius flashing before his eyes, as had happened a lot whenever he tried closing his eyes. Nightmares hardly left him alone anymore either. He still felt incredibly guilty about his godfather's death, but he also realised Sirius wouldn't have wanted it any other way. He was a marauder after all, and what better way to die than protecting your friends and family? He did know Sirius considered him family, just like James had been.

He could only sigh at the memories, knowing his godfather was lost now and no magic in heaven or earth could bring him back from the Veil. "I miss you, Sirius." He mumbled just as the clock struck twelve.

It happened before he even had a chance to realise what was going on. Soaring pain raced through his body, focussing on his chest. He hurried to claw off his shirt and gasped when a chain was attached to him and was slowly pulling a hole into his chest. What the bloody hell?! He could only surmise this was some sort of creature inheritance, but what kind of creature had a hole in its chest? He was snapped out of his thoughts when an unholy scream was heard throughout the neighbourhood. He had no idea what it was but it sounded huge and very not-human, the ground almost seemed to shake with its steps.

The commotion managed to distract him enough from the pain, which was slowly turning into a burning itch. He saw, more than felt, himself pulling at the chain in desperation. Lord that was uncomfortable! The more the hole was revealed, the better he felt…

With a flash everything was over. The chain was gone and there was a gaping black hole in him, which surprisingly wasn't shedding a single drop of blood. He groaned and was about to sit up when he felt some sort of snap just inside the hole and another light filled the room, this one a tangled hue of blue and green. He fell back down upon the sheets and felt warmth coarse through him, just like he vaguely remembered being described to him. Hermione? Oh right, this was the blocks being released, hence why it didn't hurt as much—

"Spoke too soon…" He managed to grind out between grit teeth. His entire body was suddenly on fire and he could feel every bone that had ever been broken, every bruise that had ever settled and every scar that had ever been given to him blaze up like a thousand suns. Had he looked down, he would have seen them glowing a gentle orange colour. The burning finally moved up to his eyes and scar and settled there. Slowly the sensation eased up, starting at his feet and moving upwards until only his eyes and scar were blazing with that orange magic. He wasn't sure which had ended first but suddenly it felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his chest. He could breathe more freely and he felt lighter than before, though considering how underfed he already was, he didn't know if that was a good thing or not.

When he opened his eyes, he was surprised to see a blur. He was sure he had left his glasses on though… When he reached up to rub at his eyes, he was met with those very same glasses. "What the hell…?" He wondered aloud, slowly pulling them off and blinking again. "Awesome."

Hermione hadn't said anything about his body being healed but here he was all of a sudden, with perfect eyesight! Sitting up was weird. It felt unfamiliar and awkward, almost as if his mind and body weren't in sync yet. When he looked down he gaped in surprise.

"Did I just… Get taller?" He wondered, slowly sitting on the side of his bed. When he tried to get up, he was briefly dizzy but when it passed, he could see he had grown several inches. "Finally!" It was about damn time he grew some, lest Draco Malfoy continued to look down on him.

When he looked down he saw the hole in his chest was still there, very visible against his skin, which was still tan from painting the fence last week. He'd had sunburn because of it but the tan was well worth it. He looked to his window and tried peering out, wondering what the hell that scream had been, it certainly hadn't come from Harry! Not to mention his uncle hadn't come bursting through the door yet, so his 'family' obviously hadn't heard it.

He hesitantly reached out to touch the edges of the hole in his chest; it was a gaping black where his flesh and blood was supposed to be visible. It was a freaking hole in his chest after all! Surprisingly, he felt no pain at all when he touched it, even though he was quite unnerved by it. Deciding to worry about it later, he pulled his shirt back on and sighed in relief when it covered up the hole, as if nothing had happened. When he glanced at the window, he was glad to see several coloured specks soar through the air, most noticeably a white one. "Here comes the post!"

He grinned when he saw several owls soaring right at him, causing him to jump out of the way in a hurry and land on his bum. "Ouch… Guess I'm still not used to the new height." He smiled when he saw his own snowy owl perched on his desk before the others, proudly looking him up and down.

"Hey Hedwig, how was your flight?" He asked, untying the package that was undoubtedly from his only friend without an owl: Hermione. He set the letter and box aside and relieved the other owls of their packages as well, offering them water and treats before they went on their way. "Let's see…"

The largest box came from . Weasley so he decided to open that first and was rewarded with homemade fudge, packed with a charm to keep it fresh and edible, no matter where he stored it. Beside the fudge there was also a small survival package of food so that he could survive the rest of his summer, or until Dumbledore finally picked him up and left him with the Weasleys.

Next came a letter from her and Mr. Weasley asking about how he was doing and (unsurprisingly) if he was eating well. They also asked if he had received his OWL's yet, though Ron hadn't either apparently. There was a bit of information about how the family had been this summer and how Arthur's job was faring before they finished with hoping to see him at Grimmauld Place soon, where they were staying because it was still safer than the Burrow.

Next was Ron's present, which included a chess set with edible chocolate pieces that would never melt and a Chudley Cannons poster (again unsurprisingly). He skimmed the letter, which wasn't really all that long. It mostly just asked how he was doing, with small reminders that he didn't blame Harry for that happened at the Ministry and if his summer had been all right, considering the dementor fiasco in the last.

"Way to remind me of all the good times Ron…" He grumbled under his breath before looking at the rest of it.

Apparently the Weasleys were confined to the house and stuck doing chores, cleaning up the old Black home and all that, though Kreacher was likely to not make it easy for them. Hermione was coming to Grimmauld in a few days as well if the letter was to be believed, which really made him hope Dumbledore or someone from the Order got him out of Durzkaban soon.

He decided to move on and look at Hermione's letter, which was filled with well wishes and questions about how he was doing. A little note about not blaming him for the DoM fiasco was attached as well but there was little to be done about that, as depressing as it was. She rattled on about her OWL's for a little while before telling him she hoped to see him at Grimmauld and then Hogwarts soon. Perhaps with the Weasleys he'd be allowed out to shop for some extra books on what the hell happened to him. Actually, her gift looked oddly shaped like a rectangle. Translation: a book.

"Only Hermione." He mumbled fondly as he took off the wrapping, staring at what looked like a brand new book about magical inheritances and the things that usually affected a witch or wizard during that period. Perfect! Maybe he'd be able to figure out what in the world had happened to him just now! He'd never seen any of the older students walk around with holes in their chest after all but chances were this was something weird and abnormal because since when did weird things not happen to Harry James Potter? _I'm like a magnet for trouble,_ he sighed in regret.

Setting the book aside, he looked at the rest of his presents, which were simple letters from Neville and Luna. Both just sent him well wishes and the usual, as well as wishing him a happy birthday, but the simple notes already made him happy that they remembered him. He glanced at Neville's note again and almost face-palmed. Neville's birthday had been yesterday and he'd completely forgotten about it! "You up for another trip tonight girl?" He asked, earning a hoot from Hedwig. He quickly penned a birthday letter to Neville in return, thanking him for his letter and apologising for the lateness before sending it off.

Now that everything had been checked, he took a small piece of the fudge and set it aside before hiding the rest in the space under his loose floorboard. His uncle would take everything from him if he knew he had it. At least his trunk was thankfully not locked in the cupboard under the stairs this year. Settling on his bed with the book and the fudge, he started reading...

* * *

Nothing! Absolutely nothing about what had happened to him! "Why am I not surprised…?" He groaned to himself under his breath, closing the book. He had just finished reading through the _'most common creature inheritances and their effects'_ section of the book but nothing had seemed even close to describing what had happened to him. He sighed and drew a hand through his hair to keep it out of his face. How he hadn't noticed sooner was a mystery to him, but his hair had grown a good several inches, leaving it longer and surprisingly somewhat tame. Maybe there was a magical hairdresser in Diagon Alley that could help him save the mess that was his hair? He wasn't letting Mrs Weasley do it for him, that was for sure.

Harry placed the book under the loose floorboards and finished his fudge before finally calling it a night, deciding to read the book again tomorrow night to see if he could make sense of the lights flowing around him earlier. He was asleep faster than he had guessed he would be and for once slept almost dreamlessly, as if he had taken the potion for it. Morning came too soon for his liking but still a harsh banging on the door woke him up.

"Get up you lazy freak, Dudders needs his breakfast!" Yep, nothing had changed at all despite the huge changes that had happened for him last night "Yes aunt Petunia." He replied begrudgingly, pushing himself out of bed to get dressed and quickly go to the bathroom.

Once there he took off his shirt and revealed the hole in his chest, as well as his now finally filled-in figure. He tried touching the hole again after having stared at it in both shock and awe. He had never seen anything like it but despite how it looked, it felt incredibly normal… How is a hole in your chest normal again? Right, it isn't; but it sure felt like it.

He traced the hole lightly with a finger and didn't feel anything, but when he touched the black rim of the hole he gasped loudly, feeling as if electricity was running through him. Only it wasn't painful, just charged. He quickly pulled back and the energy receded. "What the hell was that?" He asked himself before noticing his aunt screeching at him again.

He put the shirt back on before hurrying down, making sure they wouldn't see the 'freakish' change to him. "What did you do to your hair, you freak?" She sneered as soon as she saw him, earning a shrug from her charge. "I had my inheritance last night, my hair grew because of it." He replied flatly, just as his uncle waddled into the room with a greedy glint in his eyes. "Inheritance eh? I'll be seeing some of that if you're smart boy."

It was almost a threat and Harry would have laughed if it wouldn't have earned him a beating. "It's a magical inheritance uncle Vernon, it means my magical barriers are released and I get a power boost. I'm still not allowed to do magic until next year though." His uncle seemed to simply scoff disappointedly at that and turn to the coffee Harry had just prepared before starting on a very greasy breakfast that made his nose scrunch up in disgust. The raw meat looked a lot more delicious now…

After breakfast everything seemed to fall into routine again and he was made to paint the shed, weed the garden, do the laundry and then wash the car before going to his room. If he was lucky, he'd get a few leftover scraps from dinner, which he was to prepare as well. Thank heavens Mrs Weasley had sent him some food or he would have been starving by nightfall, though the food was mostly made out of things that could be kept easily without going bad. So no fresh meat… Damn.

Luckily, he wouldn't have to worry about it too much as that night he received a letter from professor Dumbledore informing him that he would be picked up for his school shopping the day before the train left. Apparently it was too dangerous for him to spend any time of the summer with his friends despite the fact they were probably all at Grimmauld Place by now, safely hidden by the Fidelius charm.

Well, at least he'd get to leave one day early, right?

Right.

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 **A/N: Thanks for reading and I hoped you guys liked it. If you did, let me know your thoughts in the reviews, every comment helps and motivates. Pointing out problems is VERY welcome, bashing or flames are NOT. See you guys in the next chapter!**


	2. Wandless Magic?

**A/N: Hello and welcome to the second chapter of Hollow Inside!  
** **I know some of the things mentioned here come a bit out of nowhere but I'm building towards something as best I can and some of the boring stuff must be passed before we can get to the fun things like Hogwarts and magic mishaps!**

 **I hope the next chapter will be a little bit more interesting than this one and I'll start working on it as soon as I can (because the heat waves this past week have made it nearly impossible to properly focus and write).**

 **I'd like to thank Infamous Storm for checking this chapter for typo's and such, it was much appreciated.**

 **I hope you'll all enjoy and leave a review to let me know what you thought! ^^**

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 _ **Moira:** I haven't read the books yet (I know, shame on me) and I don't quite remember Grimmauld becoming compromised or anything like that. Then again, I haven't seen the sixth year movie in a long time either. This is pretty much AU anyway so the location won't matter in the future regardless._

 _As for your concerns about the abuse, what about in the movies? The twins and Ron broke him out from bars and no one even blinks or thinks about Harry's life being crap. He's small and underfed and the only thing anyone does is Mrs. Weasley trying to stuff him with food once he gets away. I think wizards are a little blind to the things in front of them sometimes._

 _So she's more liable to just think the children are exaggerating, believes every word Dumbledore says like it's a bible and just sends Harry food because firstly it was his birthday, secondly she just thinks they don't have much food to spare so she sends some to help. It's not a huge ration, just a few small packs. But that's a lot to Harry in comparison. Second year proved that when the Twins and Run busted him out and she wasn't outraged at Harry being locked up and instead threatened to do the same with Ron. I don't think it's on purpose though._

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The next few weeks were spent vigorously cleaning the house.

It was as if the Dursleys sensed Harry was cheerful about something and thus decided to retaliate by working him to the bone. His chores had become more numerous and intense and kept him busy all throughout the day, and that was without counting breakfast, lunch and dinner; all of which he was preparing by himself as well.

As time passed, the days seemed to become longer the more his chores intensified. His rations were thinning quickly and if he didn't find a solution soon, he was going to end up starving. Honestly, it didn't seem like things were going to get much worse at this point…

He was wrong. That afternoon Dudley and his gang advanced on Harry while the teen was weeding the garden and pruning the bushes. He hadn't even noticed them until they called his him, thoug not by his name. Dudley's friends had adopted the term 'freak' as well and he was a rather favoured target during summer vacation, when the boys couldn't find a ten-year-old to pick on. 'Oh great, them again.' He thought, remembering why the rest of the summer had bared a small reprieve from the beatings.

 _"I will not have that boy unable to do his chores during summer Vernon. I have a lot that needs to be done and it'll teach the freak to keep his head down and do as he's told. How will he do any freakishness if he's too busy to think about it?"_ Vernon had relented at her logic and ordered Dudley to leave the 'freak' alone for the remainder of the summer.

Well, apparently Dudley was tired of waiting. "What do you want Dudley, I'm busy." He finally replied when one of them was about to forcefully get his attention, he thought it was Piers but that didn't really matter. "We're done waiting Potter, you're not gonna get away that easy this summer." With that one of them rushed forward and punched him in the face before he had any time to react. He cursed himself for his stupidity by letting his guard down and hurriedly got to his feet. He was taller now but his speed was still just as good, if not better. All this work was giving him some actual muscles now as well.

Once he ran, the others came after him and by how well they were keeping up, it was obvious they had had practice. He vaguely wondered if they had practiced just so they could catch him but he honestly doubted it. Especially considering Dudley was far too lazy to put any type of effort into chasing Harry down. Though it might have to do with the boxing club the whale of a boy had been enrolled in…

' _Please don't let them catch me, please don't let them catch me._ ' He prayed in his mind to no one in particular. If they caught him they would find the hole in his chest and he'd be in so much trouble. Not to mention that hole was pretty sensitive and he didn't want anything like that to happen. The Dursleys already had a rather big advantage over him, he didn't need to give them another.

The more he focussed on his wish, the more he seemed to be speeding up, even though his surroundings didn't seem to pass any quicker. Wait a minute… Were they slowing down instead? When he turned around and finally stopped he found out that they were in fact barely able to move, as if they were trudging through something really thick or something. "Well, will wonders never cease?" He asked himself aloud before grinning slightly and rushing back to Privet Drive to finish his chores. If aunt Petunia had noticed he wasn't working in the garden for even a minute she would certainly throw a fit…

Once he was done he was ushered into the kitchen to make dinner (after cleaning himself of course. "I will not have you dirtying the house, boy!") and found that the heat of the burner would set itself higher or lower without having touched it. He didn't think too much of it though, considering he didn't have the time. He was given a few scraps and told to clean up the attic until his 'family' went to bed. Couldn't have him being noisy while they were trying to sleep now could they?

It was there that he figured out what was happening to him, though it was the last thing he had expected. He was dusting the place off and found a few shelves lying in a corner as well as several piles of books that drew his attention. He set the bookcases up and cleaned them before thinking he should put the books into their spots now, rather than having them lie around. The moment he wondered how to put them in alphabetical order, the books started shifting themselves and lining up. "What the bloody—?"

That wasn't just accidental magic, that was wandless magic, wasn't it?

He tried to remember what was classified as wandless magic but could only remember that only children possessed accidental magic and that it was likely to occur in situations of distress and emotional turmoil. That reminded him of summer before third year, where he had blown up his aunt Marge by thinking she looked like a balloon of sorts. He hadn't specifically thought of her to become like that, and yet she had. It was obvioust that was accidental magic since he hadn't meant for that to happen, but the books? That was conscious thought being turned into reality through magic, definitely wandless. "How awesome is that?" He asked himself with a grin.

He looked at the books once more and focussed on how they would look if they were clean and no longer broken. Some of the bindings on these were definitely cracked or worse but they suddenly started fixing themselves with the materials available to them. The dust and grime vanished from the cover and the pages and regained a sort of new look to them. Even the faded letters on some of these covers were more legible now.

Speaking of legible… "Magic through the Ages? Wizarding Politics: Explained? The Wizengamot and Ancient Families…? What is going on here?" What were magic books doing in the Dursleys' attic? He looked to where the books had been and found the shape of a box with a white sheet covering it. No way… He ripped the sheet off and gasped when he found a trunk hidden beneath it, his mother's maiden name etched in a beautiful, flowing script on the nameplate above the latch. Why would Petunia keep anything belonging to his mother if she hated her so much?

He hated not asking questions but he knew that if they discovered this stuff was here and Harry knew about it… It would be burned without a thought. Good barbeque fire for the Dursleys in this fine weather, or something. They'd make up a reason to have a bonfire and burn it all, especially if it was magical. No, he couldn't ask about it. Instead he thought of the books making their way on the shelves before he opened the trunk, feeling his finger being pricked during the attempt. The latch glowed green for a moment before popping open. Recognition by blood? That was bloodmagic, right? According to Hermione, that branch of magic was forbidden now but it did explain why those books were beside it. Petunia would have been able to use her blood to gain entry to the trunk…

So why wasn't all of it thrown away yet?

"Boy, you have fifteen minutes! Better make sure there isn't any dust left, you got that?" The call from downstairs startled him and he hurried to reply.

"Yes uncle Vernon."

Now that the threat was over he looked around. This place was a total infestation of dust! There was no way he'd be able to— Or maybe there was a way… Couldn't he simply use his magic? If it was wandless the Ministry didn't seem to detect it, so he was safe from the decree against underage wizardry for now. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, focussing on a clean version of this room instead of the dusty one over here. He imagined the dust being banished and a small breeze sprang up around him. When he opened his eyes again, the room was clean. Whoa, talk about weird and wicked at the same time...

He covered the trunk under the white sheet again and hurried back to his room where he was only given a harsh glare from Petunia before he was locked up for the night. It looked like he wouldn't have much else to do for the rest of the summer other than intensive cleaning and thus exploring this newfound wandless magic whenever his relatives weren't looking.

Later that night he could be found rummaging through his trunk for anything pertaining to wandless magic but oddly enough, nothing he had spoke about it. He supposed wandless magic would be something covered in magical theory but that wasn't a class they had in Hogwarts. They did have runes and arithmancy though so maybe he could learn from those books once he was back at Hogwarts. Who knows, right?

* * *

Harry hurried to stuff his things in a somewhat orderly manner into his trunk when the time to go to Diagon Alley approached.

Most of his chores had been done already had he'd told the Dursleys he was leaving with 'his kind' a day early to get his books. As usual they had looked glad to get rid of him and somehow attempted to double his chores in that last day, as if attempting to milk out all he was worth before sending him off. The magic made it easier to do as he was told though and the evenings had found him in the attic, examining his mother's books. There were a lot more here than the ones that kept strictly to the Hogwarts curriculum so the remaining topics were things that had interested her.

' _This is more information about my mother than I've received in five years…_ ' He realised with a start as he looked at one of the runes texts currently resting in his lap. The attic had been transformed into a well-lit chamber of sorts in which he could easily read and research his mother's interests under the guise of cleaning. The attic should have taken as long as he was in there each time yet it was already pretty cleaned up after only a week.

The rest of the month allowed him time to explore. He had also found out that his mother's trunk was far more advanced than his own and possessed several compartments and a room. "Makes me wonder why she wasn't a Ravenclaw with all these books…" He had mumbled to himself when he found the large amount of shelves down there. Each was stacked ceiling high with books and the ones with empty spaces in them were rather obviously the ones that were in the attic itself. Especially considering the various topics matched the ones around the empty spaces.

Two nights before his departure he had taken to stacking the books back into the trunk and shrinking it so that he could hide it in his own trunk until he was at Hogwarts. He didn't want to show his find to anyone but he did know that it was safer to look through at Hogwarts than it was here. So long as Hermione didn't attempt to take the books away and study them herself it would be fine. Or so he hoped.

The bell rang and startled him out of his thoughts. The trunk banged against the stairs as he dragged it behind him, the weight becoming a little noticeable now but he didn't have time to use magic on it since Mr. Weasley was in front of the house, waiting for him. He didn't spare the Dursleys a single look as he opened the door and stepped out.

Next to Mr. Weasley was a young woman he recognised to be Nymphadora Tonks. "Wotcher Harry!" Her hair was the usual bright bubblegum pink she usually sported as she greeted him. "Hello Tonks, Mr. Weasley. It's good to see you."

The Weasley patriarch somewhat rushed over the formalities and apparated Harry to Diagon Alley after casting a notice-me-not charm on the boy. Their shopping trip was going to be rather tense now that Voldemort was officially back. It would seem a few shops had already permanently closed as a safety precaution.

Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes was still brightly lit though, bringing some joy and colour to the otherwise sombre Alley.

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 **A/N: I would like to thank the five people whom already left reviews on the previous chapter. I'm glad you guys liked the first chapter and hopefully everything to come as well. Who knows, I might make a few turns you weren't expecting, right? xD**

 **Thank you all for taking the time to read my chapters and I hope to see you all in the next one.**

 **Love,  
~Lumina**


	3. On the Way to Hogwarts

**A/N: Whoo, that's a fast update huh? xD Welcome to the third chapter of Hollow Inside~ (I am so glad I planned all this out beforehand XD)**

 **I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed and followed or favourited this story. It's all immensely appreciated!**

 **I hope you'll enjoy~**

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As soon as Harry's feet touched the ground in Diagon Alley, he collapsed.

A huge pressure settled over him, knocking the air out of him and driving him to his knees. He had never felt a force this oppressing before but somehow it felt familiar, not unlike the feeling that had passed through his room when he had heard that scream after his inheritance. Only then the feeling had been so low he barely thought anything of it.

Now that feeling had returned to the point of barely noticing Mr. Weasley asking if he was all right. Only when the older wizard touch his shoulder did his ability to breathe come back to him, taking in big mouthfuls of air just in case the pressure would come back when the other let go of him. Luckily it didn't and Harry managed to get to his feet.

"I'm sorry, I don't know what just happened. I think it had to do with the apparition though." He mumbled out quickly, hoping it would fool them. For an auror and a ministry worker they were both pretty gullible people…

They continued on to Gringotts where Mr. Weasley handed back Harry's key and left him to pick up what he needed for his supplies. Harry had actually completely forgotten about having given his key to Mrs. Weasley quite a while ago and had never gotten it back since then. When he walked up to one of the counters he was immediately scolded by a goblin for giving his key to someone who wasn't his guardian, magical or other.

Once that was done Harry went down to his vault, accompanied by Griphook, whom was surprised Harry had recognised him at all.

The vault was just like he remembered in his first year, completely breath taking and magical. At least magical to him, as he was not used to all this splendour. He collected the amount of galleons he would need, including some extra spending for when they went to Flourish and Blotts. He definitely needed to find some books about what his inheritance did to him and Flourish and Blotts was his best bet, though maybe the Hogwarts library and his mother's collection would help as well.

* * *

When they excited the bank, Harry was dragged into a whirlwind of speed-shopping where he was taken from one shop to the other to get his new robes and a few new clothes, considering he had started growing out of the Dursleys' rags, and everything else he would need for his departure to Hogwarts. He bought a bunch of owl treats for Hedwig as well, as she more than deserved them by now.

Finally they arrived at Flourish and Blotts and Harry knew he had enough galleons left to buy a few extra books to figure out what was wrong with him. Or maybe not wrong, just different. Something in him protested almost violently when he thought like that, like a second instinct telling him to be proud. It actually almost felt like it was prancing around and Harry had to stifle his laughter to keep from being noticed.

In the back of the shop, Harry looked through several rare books about creature inheritances and bought one of them, having seen that the others held nothing helpful to him. 'Odd Magical Inheritances Through the Ages' was more likely to help him, though he still wasn't sure. Had he really become something so rare that there was no record of it? Man, that was going to be troublesome...

The rest of the day passed in such a rush that he barely even had time to properly greet his friends; they were all busy manically packing and trying not to forget everything. Especially hermione was struggling with taking along as many books as she could. That reminded him that Dumbledore had let him know vaguely about Sirius' will and that Harry had inherited Grimmauld Place. As such he had only needed to give a written permission for the fidelius to remain in place.

It was still likely the Order would find a new place to have Headquarters but for now, this would do. As he had already packed, he started to notice how much emptier the house seemed; and it wasn't just because Sirius was gone. He bit back the sting in his eyes as he found himself on the first floor landing, right in front of Walburga Black's portrait. As he glanced at the stubbornly closed curtains, an idea came to him. Figuring it was worth a shot he took a deep breath and called Kreacher.

"Master Potter called Kreacher?" The elf asked, barely even inclining it's head as opposed to the bow the elf would have made a long time ago. Along Harry's new title as Kreacher's master followed a long string of mumbled insults, obviously directed at the boy's blood and company.

"That's enough Kreacher." He replied calmly, not at all phased by the elf's behaviour. Everyone was used to it by now after all. "What happened to all the Black's possessions? I remember there being a lot more than this last year."

The question obviously surprised Kreacher, as the elf remained silent for a moment before replying. Obviously it had expected something other than care for the ancestral Black home. "Kreacher tried to stop them Master. The filthy blood traitors took the books and the objects and threw them away or sold them. Kreacher tried to stop them he did, saved as much as possible."

Harry nearly chuckled at how proud of himself Kreacher looked. "I don't want anything else removed from this house. We can sort through everything together and bring it back to the Black vault if it's too dangerous to remain here." He was almost surprised at how well Harry was handling this. Somewhere around the middle of the summer Harry had been informed he had inherited Sirius' Lordship as well as his properties, one of which was given to Remus Lupin. This included the vault, though he wasn't sure how he knew that or why he was able to deal with it so well.

Again his instinct preened in pride, confusing him even more. Was this inheritance really going to change him this much?

"Gladly, master Potter!" Kreacher seemed to look younger as he filled with excitement. It was obvious the brooding elf had been waiting for something like this.

"If you can, retrieve the stolen possessions as well. They have no right to take anything from the Blacks." Okay, now this was getting really weird. "Off you go Kreacher."

With a pop the elf disappeared, leaving Harry to his thoughts. Something like this had never happened before; though he knew how to handle Dobby, he'd never known what to do to make Kreacher a bit more decent to have around. And now he had.

He had never really realised what being the next Black Lord meant, though he was still the heir until he reached age seventeen. Bloody hell, did that mean he'd have to start acting like Malfoy? No way, he was definitely going to stay himself. Even if his inheritance did change him a little, he was confident he would remain the Gryffindor everyone knew he was. Because no one could see the Slytherin hiding under the surface.

* * *

The next day found Harry overwhelmed by the hustle and bustle on the platform, parents and children rushing about, trying to say goodbye and not miss the train. Harry, Ron and Hermione easily found their compartment and were later joined by Neville, Ginny and Luna. The twins were probably off pranking people already and Hermione and Ron had prefect duties to attend to.

Eventually the topic of inheritances came up, though no one had received a creature inheritance. Neville discovered he truly had an affinity for herbology and Luna was actually a Seer, though the blood was quite diluted. Ginny found that charms came easier to her and Harry remained a mystery. Or at least, that was what he made it out to be. He said he'd gotten a boost of his magic and that his body had fixed itself thanks to that magic, hence the missing glasses on his face, but that nothing else had happened as far as he knew.

As the ride settled down into silence, he thought back to the incident at Diagon Alley, feeling grateful nothing similar had happened when he entered the platform through the barrier. Perhaps only a specific type of wards affected him? He began reading the book he had bought about creature inheritances, aptly transforming the cover into this year's potion text. "I'll need all the help I can get." Which was true, as by some miracle he'd been allowed into the class. That miracle being Dumbledore's prior announcement that there was a new professor to teach the class and that you could enter his NEWT's class with an EE-grade as well as an O.

The rest of the ride was actually quite calm and once they had changed into their robes it only took a little while for everyone to get to the carriages. Hermione and Ron were in one with a few other students while Harry, Luna, Ginny and Neville shared another. The sight of the thestrals was creepy and enchanting at the same time. He remembered clearly how they had flown the magnificent creatures to the Ministry the year prior, the wind soaring through his hair—

The memory was roughly cut off as all air left Harry's lungs. So they were passing the Hogwarts wards, huh? Sure felt like it. The sensation passed as quickly as it came, though it left Harry largely disoriented and dizzy. Though it hadn't taken as long as the wards in Diagon Alley, it had been a much heavier pressure, one he had not been ready to deal with.

"Harry! Are you okay?" He could see his friends' concerned faces and yet could not help but lie to them.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just got hit by a dizzy spell all of a sudden." He smiled and sat up straight, as if it would prove anything. Luna wa looking at him with her head tilted, as if she was trying to figure something out. Suddenly she blinked and whispered to him. "You won't find what you're looking for in that potions book Harry."

How had she seen through the cover? He was certain the spell held firm, and yet— Oh, right. She'd confessed to having Seer blood so of course she had figured something out. All he could do was nod and plead with his eyes that she didn't tell on him. Her airy smile comforted him somewhat, knowing that Luna wasn't the type to do such a thing. As Hogwarts came into sight, a feeling of anticipation filled him.

He had no idea of the changes that were waiting for him beyond those gates.

* * *

 **A/N: I'd like to thank you all for reading and once more thanks to the people who reviewed, they're a writer's motivation~ I know this chapter may have seemed a little boring but the next one will be featuring Hogwarts and a good amount of mishaps as well as mysterious changes. I wonder how Harry will cope with it, eh~? ;)**

 **See you guys next time!**

 **Love,**  
 **~Lumina**


	4. Magical Mishaps

**A/N: Hey guys and welcome to chapter 4 of Hollow Inside. We're finally getting towards the more interesting things and the changes within Harry. Wonder what will happen~?**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

It wasn't until classes started that Harry began to realise just how much his inheritance had affected him.

His wand seemed to struggle with him almost as much as possible and when he tried using spells they would either not happen or try to blow up in his face. The sparkle in Malfoy's eyes at lunch later that same day told him exactly what he needed to know about how quickly that piece of gossip was spreading. The problem was that there was nothing he could do.

He had attempted using wandless magic instead of casting the spells to get around it but even that refused to work, considering he would still have to be holding his wand and the magic tried to go through it consequentially.

"I wonder if this is how Neville felt when he was using his dad's wand…" He mumbled to himself as he stalked through the corridors. There truly was very little else for him to do between classes other than study and wander.

Even though his ban on quiddich had been lifted, he hadn't felt like rejoining the team. Especially considering there was still a great gaping hole in his chest and he would be found out if someone spotted it. Not that he thought they would know what he had become but his instincts told him not to risk it.

After transfiguration, McGonagall told him to stay after class, earning him pitying looks from his friends and snickering from the Hufflepuffs they had been sharing the class with.

"Mr. Potter, could you tell me why you have been unable to cast even a single spell since you have arrived?"

That was a difficult question to answer. As far as he knew the transformation had changed his magic (as had been warned by the books he had read, containing information about creature inheritances) and thus left him incompatible with his wand. Apparently his magic had changed enough to be completely rejected by the Phoenix and Holly wand that had been his companion through many adventures on the grounds and beyond.

"I don't know professor. It's just that my wand doesn't feel right anymore, like it's fighting me when I try to cast." He admitted reluctantly, though he didn't say why. He had a good guess but no reason to tell her, especially since he didn't want anyone to know about the change in him.

McGonagall pinched the bridge of her nose in exasperation. "And you don't know why, do you Mr. Potter?"

He shook his head mutely; almost afraid of what she would say next. Had she seen through him already?

"On your sixteenth birthday, you went through what is called a magical inheritance, which explains your new height, lengthened hair and lack of glasses. This also means you may inherit certain genetic changes and your magic alters, though usually not to such a degree. Your magic has changed enough to be refused as a match with your current wand, odd as that is. I cannot allow you to continue going to class like that."

Relieved yet disappointed at the same time, Harry hung is head. "Does that mean you'll expel me?" He found himself asking softly. He'd always doubted his magic and powers despite having seen and felt it all first-hand.

"Of course not, Potter." She scoffed at the absurdity of his words. Expelling Harry Potter? Now that would be a scandal. "No, we are going to take you to Diagon Alley first thing in the morning to find you a new wand." Having the Saviour of the Wizarding world without a wand would be a complete catastrophe.

With that she dismissed him, warning him to be up before his classes so that they could go. What wasn't mentioned was that finding Harry a wand had taken quite a long time before and that it was likely to do the same now. Having a wand that accepted the changes within him would be marvellous, though it still stung that his old one refused him.

* * *

The rest of the day passed fairly silently, though Ron had attempted to ask what had happened with McGonagall, right in the middle of their potions lesson. Luckily they had a new professor this year and were only told to shut up but had it been Snape they would most certainly have lost points and been given a detention each, despite the fact Harry tried to stay quiet.

It was only at dinner that Harry explained in very hushed tones that his wand refused to work with him and that McGonagall was taking him to Ollivanders the next morning. Hermione pitied him and Ron was confused but all in all, it was a very aggravating discussion for Harry, considering he hated being pitied like that. Yes, the current loss of his wand bothered him but then there was nothing he could do and finding a new wand would likely help him a lot more than clinging to this one would in the long run.

Thankfully Malfoy hadn't caught up to him yet as Harry entered the common room that night and headed straight upstairs to the dorm. He really didn't want to be around anyone and his frustrations were only making it worse.

It was a good thing he was used to getting up early, otherwise there was no way he would have been able to get up as early as he was supposed to without the use of an alarm; one he couldn't set due to the malfunctioning of his wand.

* * *

The next morning found one very nervous Harry Potter entering Ollivanders as the first customer of the day. McGonagall followed closely behind him, ushering the boy in as he seemed reluctant.

"Minerva McGonagall, Fir and dragon heartstring, 91/2 inches long. I am assuming everything is in fine and in working order?" The wand maker didn't even wait for a reply as he turned on the younger of the two. "Mister Potter, Holly and Phoenix feather, 11 inches. Am I correct in assuming something has happened?"

When Harry remained quiet, McGonagall stepped in, explaining that he had just gone through his magical inheritance and that his wand no longer functioned for him. Harry was told to demonstrate and a simple light charm blew up a few boxes against the wall. he could only wince and set his wand down, though he was still reluctant to part with it.

"Heavens, that's not a good sign indeed. It seems we will have to find you a new wand Mr. Potter… Curious indeed." The wand maker mumbled the last bit as he vanished between the many rows of wands in his shop.

It looked like there was nothing Harry could do but wait. He did feel better as his magic flowed freely through him again. It had felt like the wand was attempting to suppress his power, now that he thought about it. Closing his eyes he felt his senses stretch out towards the shop. Only a few models vaguely reacted to his magic and shuddered slightly in their casing but it wasn't until he reached a tightly closed door, that he realised his wand was there.

"Mr. Ollivander? You won't find my wand here, it's behind that door…" He called to the old wizard as the man approached him with a stack of boxes in his arms, none of which would work for him. Both the wand maker and his transfigurations professor looked at him in shock.

"And why is it you think to know better, Mr. Potter?"

He cringed slightly at her accusatory tone but dutifully explained.

"My magic got a boost this summer and I find it easier to feel my magic now. All I had to do was close my eyes and try to see if I could sense my wand. Only a few seemed to like me a little bit but there's a stronger energy coming from behind that door."

Ollivander seemed to disappear into his own mind as he mulled on that information before nodding to himself. "Behind that door is my personal shop, Mr. Potter. It is where I craft wands." Another small moment and the wizard nodded, dragging the boy along. "Come, come. You will pick your materials and core."

An hour later Harry had picked everything that was needed for his new wand and promised to send over a vial of basilisk venom that very same day so Ollivander could get started. The man seemed nearly giddy with the prospect of such a challenge and would get started as quickly as possible. By Wednesday, Thursday at the latest, Harry Potter would have a new wand.

* * *

The next few days were nearly hellish with the amount of taunts and barbs Harry received. He was allowed to keep from participating in the practical aspects of his classes as long as he kept up with the theoretical part until he had his wand back. Malfoy and a fair amount of others took great pleasure in attempting to hex harry in the corridors and to insult him at every chance they got. It was aggravating, but he could deal with it.

Now if only he had his wand…

His wandless magic allowed him to shield from 'stray' curses and kept him safe throughout the two days he was unarmed and Wednesday was really excruciating for him.

That evening he was caught in the hallways as he was about to go meet professor McGonagall to go fetch his wand. It had been finished and she had received a floo call from Ollivanders; wisely she had decided to go fetch the wand right away.

"Oh look, it's helpless Potter. What are you going to do now, Potty? You still can't defend yourself, it's pathetic really." Malfoy was once more attempting to annoy him and land him in detention. Somehow Snape was always ready to deal out punishment when Harry tried to retaliate to the bullying. It was getting more and more unfair but he refused to be bothered any longer. He didn't want to miss his appointment.

"I have a meeting with professor McGonagall, Malfoy. Let me though." Crabbe and Goyle simply laughed at him, attempting to cast a leg-locking jinx at him. The spells were easily deflected, though he just made it look like easy dodging and terrible aim.

As Malfoy scolded the two buffoons for their sad attempts, Harry dashed past them and made it to McGonagall just in time. She was about to scold him but when she heard footsteps coming after Harry she simply nodded and flood them away.

* * *

"English Oak, Thestral hair and Basilisk venom. A most unusual combination."

Harry accepted the wand and gasped as the energy flowed through him, connecting with his wand and flowing with his magic like he knew it was supposed to. When he swished it to cast lumos, the room was brightened incredibly and he could only grin in satisfaction. This wand was beyond perfect for him!

"Thank you so much Mr. Ollivander!"

The wand maker nodded simply in obvious pride at his craftsmanship and charged 14 galleons, which included the wand holster he advised Harry to take. The fourteen galleons paid, the two made their way back to Hogwarts, where breakfast was just starting.

As he looked around, he found he could feel a lot more than before from the castle. The walls were saturated in magic and he could have sworn he saw a spark when he touched the walls.

 _And now let them come_ , he thought, _I'm not going to let them walk over me ever again_.

* * *

 **A/N: Thanks for reading and leaving reviews for those who did~ I'm replying to the guest reviews here below from now on and reviews from accounts will be answered through PMs. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, let me know your thoughts in the box below and see you all next time~!**

 **Love,  
~Lumina**

* * *

 **Review Replies:**

 **Nina:** Well, that's because he's been so busy that he didn't know about it. When they were there before, they were just cleaning and he didn't know anything was being thrown away, not to mention that it wasn't his call to object to that because Sirius was still Lord Black at the time. Now that he does know, he's taking measures.


	5. Hollowfication

**A/N: Hello again guys. These chapters are coming out at lightning speed, huh? I won't always be this fast with updates though, so don't be disappointed later. I'll have plenty of trouble trying to figure out how to write Urahara or Aizen (don't be surprised, they're in the character list of the fic, look up).**

 **Well, one more done and chapter 6 is on the way thanks to the scenes spreadsheet I have for this fanfic (thank the Snowflake Method).**

 **I hope you all enjoy the next instalment of: Hollow Inside!**

* * *

Harry found his classes coming along much easier to him than they had with his Holly wand.

He hadn't told anyone of his wand's core, considering he didn't want them to think he was dangerous or associated to death in any way. He'd had enough of that during his last year as well as the Heir of Slytherin rumours back in second year. Still, weird things were happening around him whether he wanted them to or not.

Ever since seeing the sparks come off the walls after he had first gotten his new wand, weird things continued to happen. He saw those sparks more often now and had begun thinking of them as pure magic. They still came off the walls when he touched them or even when others did, which proved to him that this wasn't something weird happening only to him.

When he told Hermione about it, he was met with something he hadn't expected from her.

"Don't be silly Harry, it's impossible to see magic unless it's being cast. There are very few people who are said to have mage-sight and I know you're powerful but there's no way you have something like that. It's simply not possible for someone our age because we haven't turned seventeen yet."

As he thought on her words he realised magical maturity should be plenty to receive a skill like that, but he hated the way she brushed him off. "Why won't you believe what I saw Hermione? I'm telling the truth."

And yet, she still refused to acknowledge it. "It's impossible Harry, I've told you. It's probably just someone pulling a prank on you to freak you out. Just ignore it and you'll be fine."

But he wasn't fine. He could see the sparks everywhere as time progressed. He could see them coming off people, off spells, off walls and off items. He even spotted a ward around a few bookcases in the restricted section of the library…

He didn't know what to do with this new skill, but he did know he wasn't going to tell anyone else what was happening to him lest he was brushed off like that again. He simply continued his life as he had before, studying for his classes by day and learning from his mother's books by night.

That was how he learned exactly why Malfoy acted like such a git. It was expected of him and if he didn't obey his father, his magic could be stripped from him. That sounded like quite the predicament… Still, he refused to become friendly to them just because of that.

The good thing was that he was beginning to understand how pureblood society worked and might no longer be lost in it as he had been before. Once he turned seventeen he would have been in so much trouble if he didn't know these things, it was palpable. Why hadn't anyone told him about this before?

* * *

The next evening found Harry reading another one of his mother's tomes, this one concerning magical myths 'Lost Through the Ages'. It all sounded like a load of rubbish though. Until he reached a page about weird creatures with holes in their chests… Could this be what he had been looking for all along?

 _Named through history as soul-eating monsters but more commonly known as Hollows, these creatures come from the spiritual realm and have been discovered only through particular branches of both soul magic and necromancy. Both of those have become outlawed and the practice became lost. It is equally not advised, if not outright prohibited, to use either magics to call upon Hollows, as they cannot be commanded._

 _Most commonly found in Japan, this race of creature obeys only itself and it's desires. Often invisible to everyone, they stalk the world for their prey. If you happen to be able to see them: run for your life. They are not forgiving creatures, much like the Dementors._

 _They can take many forms but are most commonly be recognised as large monstrosities with pearly masks covering their faces and a gaping black hole on their chests._

 _A second possible form and one only recorded a few times throughout history is a humanoid form. Some of these creatures have been found with a number printed on any place on their body and the mask is reduced to possibly not covering their entire face. The hole in their bodies can be found in different places as well such as the shoulder or stomach. These humanoid Hollows possess many rumoured abilities and are far more powerful than a regular Hollow. If you see one, chances are you won't be alive to tell the tale._

Now that was what he called a chilling read… These Hollows were such feared creatures? He looked down at his chest and touched the rim of the hole again. If he was one of them, what did that mean for his continued existence? Nothing good, that was a given.

He now knew without a doubt that telling anyone about his inheritance was a dreadful idea, especially the purebloods. Hermione wouldn't have a clue about what he was but the purebloods would have heard stories, rumours about Hollows and the danger they presented. There were no spells to render one visible after all. He could only wonder if magic worked on them at all…

* * *

During the rest of the week, his classes progressed as they normally did, but his mage sight became a larger problem… Whenever someone happened to touch him, he could see emerald sparks coming off of him, just like what happened whenever he touched the wall. He knew it was a magical reaction, but he didn't know what it meant.

That was also when the visible change began happening.

"What's that on your face, Potter?" Malfoy sneered at him one evening, having spotted a translucent tarnish beginning to spread on Harry's face.

"What're you talking about Malfoy?" He retorted, slightly confused. As far as he knew nothing was wrong with his face… He did feel a small ridge forming on his skin but he didn't think much of it.

When Malfoy brushed it off as a likely prank, Harry made his way to the nearest restroom and gazed at his reflection. Right there, on his temple a jagged mark began spreading, milky white and approaching his eye slowly. Shit, what the hell?!

When he touched his face, he realised that that was the ridge he had been feeling earlier. The skin felt much harder there too, almost— Almost as if a mask was forming under his skin. "You've got to be kidding me…"

How was he going to hide this from anyone, especially if it was going to spread? There was no way the jagged edge along his temple was going to stay just that. This was the beginning of a Hollow's mask.

What Harry found positive was that the milky sheen covered his scar and made it vanish from sight. Considering how much he hated that thing, there was at least a positive side to this. The negative side was that any glamour he tried to cast simply slid off of his face like water to oil. Time to call in Hermione again…

* * *

"Harry James Potter, what the bloody hell have you done to your face?!" Was the first thing out of her mouth when she saw him later that evening. He had used his hair to cover the mark up but he needed something more permanent for when the wind brushed his hair away.

"I haven't done anything 'Mione. It was just there, I don't know what happened." He defended himself quickly; slightly offended she thought he had done this to himself.

"Well, people have been saying you did something to yourself, a spell gone wrong again or something and that your face was turning white. Apparently they weren't wrong." She stepped closer, trying to examine the mark on his face though luckily she failed to guess what it was.

"That's the thing Hermione, I didn't _do_ anything. I just passed Malfoy in the hallway and called me out about something on my face. When I went to the loo for a mirror I had this on my face…" He scrunched his nose as he felt it pass over his eye. It was a dreadfully itchy, crawling feeling, like something was bubbling under his skin and then setting. Hermione's gasp proved she saw what he felt.

"How horrible!" She called immediately, and he couldn't help but agree with her. All he had ever wanted to be was normal, but now he was stuck with this. No… That wasn't right, was it? It didn't feel right in any case. That weird instinct welled up again, telling him to be proud of what he was. Though he couldn't figure out how he could ever be proud of becoming a monster. _Not a monster, just unique beyond anything the world has ever seen_ ; or so his instinct told him. He didn't think to question why that instinct had a voice…

"Have you gone to see madam Pomphrey?" She asked, breaking him out of his thoughts while the mask moved to the base of his nose. That was where it settled, leaving a ragged plaque of slightly raised skin around his eye, sharp, ragged edges along it. It seemed done growing for the night but he knew it wasn't done yet. Not just yet...

"I haven't. I don't think this is something as simple as a spell gone astray. There hardly is a spell that can do something like this, is there?" She shook her head, stepping back from examining the thing. "I don't think so. I don't know how to hide it though, other than with a glamour."

"I've already tried that but it won't stick. Do you think I could borrow some muggle make-up from you? Maybe that'll help with covering it up…" He tried pushing away the new nearly oppressive feeling of his new powers, telling him that covering up his mask was wrong. He shouldn't do it because he was meant to be _proud._ Always proud…

He couldn't be proud of these changes when he wasn't sure what was happening to him. There was no way Harry could go about his day with that thing so obviously on his face either for that matter.

"Sure. I can get some for you. The tint should match your skin well enough I suppose…" Before long she had rushed up to her dorm to fetch some foundation and a sponge. He knew enough of muggle make-up thanks to his aunt Petunia trying to make herself look moderately attractive when she went somewhere. Not that it worked, of course.

"Thanks Hermione, you're the best." He said with a smile when she gave him the concoction. it didn't particularly look like something he wanted to put on his face but he couldn't walk around with that thing on his face either. She made him promise he'd go visit Pomphrey about this eventually and let him leave again.

'Now to put this stuff on…'

* * *

 **A/N: Thank you all for reading and reviewing to the ones who already have. As usual, if you have any questions or an opinion to share about my works, leave a review in the box below and I hope to see you all next time!**

 **Love,**  
 **~Lumina**

* * *

 **For those wanting to know what Harry's mask looks like, go to the links on my profile. There you can find my where the pictures are located. Thanks again!**

 **Edit: I've put the image of the mask as the cover for this story since apparently Fanfiction net doesn't like me posting links… At least it should be visible for everyone now.**


	6. Menos?

**A/N: Hey everyone and welcome to chapter 6! I'm very happy you guys stuck through with me up until now because things will only get more interesting from now on! There will be a point in this chapter where I borrow the Bleach Wikia's definitions in order to let our poor wizard know what he is, properly this time. If you feel you know enough about Hollows, feel free to skip over it.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

Putting that stuff on proved a lot more difficult than he had previously expected.

He did manage to put it on eventually but it still tried to slide off of his skin. It didn't help with the rumours either. The latest news was that harry potter was participating in some obscure magic and that the weird white bulge on his face was a result of that. The fact he was covering it up only made the rumours worse, saying he knew they had figured him out and was trying to hide it now.

That wasn't a good week for Harry Potter. Over the next few days the mask expanded to cover the bridge of his nose as well as his cheek. Finally the base thinned and hooked around Harry's jaw, curling around his ear like some sort of headpiece. He had become used to the feeling of it but hat didn't mean that the rest of the school was fine with it.

Even the professors seemed to look at him oddly when they thought he wasn't watching. The worst was when he caught Dumbledore looking at him with an air of disappointment that hit him so hard he nearly ran from the great hall. He knew everyone had seen it. Even Dumbledore believed the rumours.

Surprisingly the only professor not looking at him like that was Snape. He had a rather convincing argument as well actually.

"There is no way Potter would be capable of such magic."

And the man was right. He hated the Dark Arts for having killed his parents and having brought so much misery. _Not the magic, the people_ ; his newfound conscience corrected, earning a roll of his eyes. He didn't need to hear that.

Still, everywhere he went whispers followed him.

 _'What do you think Potter's been doing?'_  
 _'Dark magic, obviously.'_  
 _'He even tried to hide it, that proves enough, right?'_  
 _'Guess he finally did go Dark. I knew it would happen ever since second year.'_  
 _'I'm telling you, he's dangerous. You should stay away from him.'_  
 _'Isn't it because of him that Umbridge went crazy? Not that I care about what happens to her but what if he tries to sdo something to us?'_  
 _'He's going to get us all killed one day, I'm sure of it.'_  
 _'It's his fault the school was in danger every year too.'_

And finally, the crown jewel coming from none other than Draco Malfoy himself:

 _'How low the might have fallen, eh Potter? Welcome to the Dark side.'_

It was that evening he ran.

There was no way one person could take this much pressure. He had been hurt and outraged when people believed he had killed Cedric but this was different. It had become a complete vendetta against him, even though he was innocent. Why did no one understand that? Even Ron and Hermione failed to understand, failed to listen…

She went on and on about how she didn't understand what it was Harry had done to make himself like this and Ron just said he should go see Pomphrey about that spell damage. Obviously they didn't think this wasn't his fault so he found himself becoming more and more distant from them and the school as time went on. It had only been a few days truly, but it felt like so much longer.

And so he ran, followed only by Malfoy's laughter as he let his legs carry him through the castle. 'Find me a safe place, find me a safe place…' He pleaded mentally, his eyes becoming slightly blurred against his will. He didn't want to have to deal with this, and still the feeling told him to _be proud._

Before he knew it he found himself in front of a large, ornately carved door on the seventh floor. Without hesitation he dashed through them, knowing no one else would be able to enter the Room of Requirement after him. Not if he wanted to be left alone.

When he took in his surroundings he found himself in a large room made out of stone. He was standing on a lush carpet that covered the entire floor and as he followed it he found a set of couches set in a crescent in front of a fireplace. The wall opposite to that was filled with books, completely littered with them, though he wondered why those were there when Harry had never truly been an extremely avid reader. At least, not after he had been forced to score lower than Dudley.

On the only free wall left stood a large oval mirror, it's edges covered in an intricate pattern that on closer inspection proved to be a runic circle. This mirror was obviously meant to do something, though he had no idea what.

Deciding to dwell on that later he moved to the bookcases, wondering if the room could provide him information on what he was. Before he could react, the bookcases began changing; some of them turned into an almost eerie white colour while others remained mahogany. The binding of the texts was much different in the white bookcases as well but when he approached it, he could feel a familiar pressure. It wasn't as heavy as the ones from wards, but it was enough to indicate it had something to do with him.

As he stepped forward, one of the tomes flew out of its place and floated before him. On its cover rested a Hollow's mask, red stripes eerily contrasting with the milky white of the rest. Maybe he'd finally learn something more about his inheritance and the Hollows than he had before. The book he had read before was only from a wizard's vantage point after all. There had to be someone closer to Hollows able to record something… Right?

 _Hollows_ by _Urahara Kisuke_

"Huh, I wonder who that is…?" He mumbled to himself as he curled up in one of the couches and began to read.

The book's beginning covered a lot about how Soul Society (whatever that was) had studied the Hollows to better combat them, something that had been tasked to the 12th division (again, whatever that was). The rest of the book proved a lot more interesting and informative.

* * *

 ** _Chapter 1 - Menos_**

 _The first question to ask is what is, in essence, a Hollow?_

 _As we all know the spirits of the dead are referred to as Pluses._

 _A Plus transforms into a Hollow through a process called Encroachment, where the Plus' soul chain begins eating away at itself. Once the Encroachment is complete, a hole forms where the Hollow's heart used to be._

 _The soul's body is scattered into spirit particles, which reform nearby to create the body of a Hollow._ _Once this process is complete, the Hollow's mask appears and is said to be the Hollow's former heart._ _The only way to destroy Hollows is by cutting their mask in half with a Zanpakuto._

* * *

 ** _Classifications:_**

 _ **Hollows**_ _are created when such a Plus is allowed to wallow in despair and regret, or remains in the human world for too long. Any spirit who is not guided to Soul Society by a Shinigami or Soul Reaper via Konsō (Soul Burial) may eventually turn into a Hollow._

* * *

 ** _Menos_** _are a sub-group of Hollows that form through a conglomeration of hundreds of normal Hollows. This results in a single composed entity of far greater strength than any normal Hollow._

 _Menos are created when the void within an ordinary Hollow's heart becomes so substantial that human souls are incapable of sustaining it, at which point it begins devouring fellow Hollows._

* * *

 _ **Gillians** , also referred to as **Menos Grande** , are the result of a mass inter-devouring of cannibal Hollows. There are many Gillian, and they all look alike. In Soul Society, they are the 'Menos' who are generally referred to in textbooks. Gillians are huge, but they are slow and have beast-like intellect. Any captain-level Shinigami can destroy them with ease. _

_Gillians commonly attack in a group, and one is powerful enough to be a challenge for a Lieutenant of the Gotei 13. Gillians typically arrive in the Human World through the use of spatial distortions called Kūmon (Air Gate)._

 _Appearance : Gillians are huge monster Hollows at least 2-6 stories tall, easily dwarfing even the largest standard Hollow. They all have a white mask with an elongated nose. Their bodies are covered from head to toe with a black covering reminiscent of a cloak. Around their neck is a row of thin white spikes. _

_They have large, pointed feet wrapped in white bandages. They have large white hands with long, sharp, white nails, but they are commonly hidden within their cloak, rarely revealed even during combat. They have long tongues capable of breaking a fellow Hollow's mask._

* * *

 _ **Adjuchas** are the second classification of Menos. They are smaller than Gillians and far fewer in number. They are much smarter and stronger than Gillians, and are often the ones who lead Gillians into battle. Adjuchas are commonly solitary creatures, rarely joining into groups. They are powerful enough to challenge a captain of the Gotei 13._

 _Appearance : Adjuchas can vary radically in appearance, anywhere from bulky humanoids to animal-like forms._

* * *

 ** _Abilities:_**

 ** _Soul-Body Separation:_** _This technique allows a Hollow to forcibly extract a living spirit from his/her body. It is usually not used because Hollows tend to go after Pluses, who have no physical or living body to speak of. The soul is still attached by the Chain of Fate and can still be saved. If it is broken, the soul can prevent the Encroachment so long as he/she is placed inside a soulless body or animal._

 ** _Acidic Touch:_** _Many Hollows have displayed this ability and it is theorised they all possess this power. When a Hollow grabs a human with their hands, the spot where the person was grabbed is burned as if acid were poured onto it._

 ** _Cero:_** _Is a highly powerful and relatively swift energy blast which can be fired from various body parts, such as the mouth, tongue, hand or fingers. Only Menos, Arrancar and Visored have used Cero attacks, and it appears stronger entities can use it more efficiently and forcefully. With the exception of a few Cero techniques and users, Cero requires some time to be used effectively._ ** _  
_**

 ** _Garganta:_** _This i_ _s how Hollows and Arrancar move to and from Hueco Mundo. It literally_ _tears open the dimensional fabric separating the worlds, revealing a tunnel of whirling, torrential energy which must be focused and solidified to create a discernible pathway._

 ** _Negación:_** _These_ _are fields used to rescue fellow Hollows. Only the Gillian-class Menos have used it. Espada have a special cube-shaped device called Caja Negación, meant to simulate Negación fields, which are used to trap and punish their subordinates if necessary._

 ** _High-Speed Regeneration:_** _Thi_ _s is an ability which allows a Hollow to heal most injuries very quickly, with the exception of the destruction of the head or vital organs._

* * *

 _ **Hueco Mundo** is the dimension in which Hollows and Arrancar usually reside. It lies between the Human World and Soul Society._

 _Like in Soul Society, the atmosphere is filled with a high concentration of Reishi, thus allowing smaller Hollows to gain nourishment despite the lack of Human souls._

 _Similar to the case of Human World deserts, active life in Hueco Mundo appears to be few and far between. Hollows generally dwell below the surface or in other areas until something provokes them to leave their shelter, like the intrusion of a foreign entity._

* * *

Harry let the book rest on his lap, absently looking into the fire. How was it that wizards knew nothing of all of this?

Perhaps it was because these 'Shinigami' were the only ones to actively battle the Hollows? If that was the case, he definitely didn't want to meet one… But now what?

If what he had read was true then he would burn the people he touched and he would soon crave souls to eat… He didn't want to do that! Not to mention he was an oddity. Not only was he a humanoid Hollow, but he had magic. He was fairly certain something like that had not happened before… Then again, how the bloody hell does someone gain Hollow powers through a magical inheritance anyway?

He shook his head; there was no point in dwelling on all of this. He couldn't handle dealing with these changes right now. Setting the book aside, he made himself comfortable on the couch. Surely a nap would at least help soothe his worries? He wasn't going to be able to face the rest of the school anyway.

* * *

 **A/N: Well, here it is then. Harry is left in a spiral of worry about injuring his friends and the people around him as well as the possible threat of the Shinigami coming after him. I wonder what that mirror does though… Stay tuned to find out!**

 **As always, thank you for leaving reviews favs and follows and if you have anything you wish to say or comment about this chapter, the review box below is there for you! ^^**

 **Until next time!**

 **Love,**  
 **~Lumina**


	7. Some Help From Japan

**A/N: Hello everyone and welcome to chapter 7! This is where things finally start happening, our beloved Bleach characters begin their first introduction and Harry's world is toppled once more.**

 **Enjoy!**

 **Edit: Thanks to Dragoncraft for letting me know that the start was a bit confusing because I didn't mention the actual mirror until Harry was sitting right in front of it. It should be a bit clearer now ^^**

* * *

That night Harry was startled awake at around 1AM by a bright light permeating the room and an odd sound like someone knocking against glass. There was also a weird language he didn't understand but perhaps that was because for once Harry had been sleeping somewhat peacefully and hadn't quite woken up yet.

"What the bloody—?" He glanced towards the side of the room to see the source of the light was that odd runic mirror he had spotted earlier. Huh, so it had a purpose after all...

"Ohayooo~! 誰もがありますか？" He more or less understood the first part but the second was complete gibberish to him. Still he groaned and rolled off of the couch, rubbing at his eyes and begrudgingly reminded that his mask hadn't left yet. Well, the outline of his mask, but still. He felt he had a right to be at least a little grumpy.

"What?" He asked as he dropped down on the pillow in front of it. The man on the other side wore an odd striped hat, which hid blond hair. From his features it wasn't too hard to guess the man was Asian, though he could hardly guess more than that.

What followed was a string of excited jibberish that had Harry's head spinning by the end of it. The man seemed to notice though and tilted his head of a minute before looking as if a light bulb had just lit above his head. That was one weird visual… Still, the man tried to show him to open his palm and touch the mirror, which must have been what the other had done to activate it. When he touched the side of the mirror he winced, immediately pulling his hand back.

He noticed a drop of blood on the mirror, which was obviously using the magic along the runes to coat them all, though he was certain such a small drop shouldn't have been able to. The mirror glowed for a moment before settling down again.

"Ah, can you hear me now?" The man asked, looking like Christmas had come early.

"Y-Yeah… Who are you?" This was really confusing to him, a magic two-way mirror at 1 in the morning? Nope, not a good combination.

"Ahh, I am Urahara Kisuke, young man. And you are?" Harry could see the man was holding back, probably because of the tired look on Harry's face, or perhaps Harry's face in general.

"I'm Harry, Harry Potter." He was about to remain silent before that name struck a chord. "Hold on, you're the guy who wrote that book about Hollows?"

He was rewarded with a chuckle from the man at his startled reaction. "I've written many books, Harry-Kun. It's always good to be able to educate the youngsters."

That… Should not have come as a surprise. He glanced back at the white bookcase and wondered just how many of those were written by this Urahara fellow. He'd check it out later.

"So… How come you have a mirror like this? Are you a wizard, sir?" It made sense, really, but things were never that easy for Harry Potter, especially not after his birthday.

"Ah, no I'm not. I'm a former Shinigami actually. You could say I'm retired." At Harry's panicked expression, he quickly moved to calm the boy down. It was obvious he had just recieved his Hollow powers and was in the process of dealing with it. Why the mask seemed to be _under_ the boy's skin was a mystery though.

"Don't worry Harry-kun! Like I said, I'm retired. Besides, I have a few other Visored who are close friends of mine." He could only chuckle at Shinji's probable reaction to being called a close friend.

"What's a Visored?" He asked in confusion, at least a little more at ease now that he knew the man wasn't about to bury his soul or something like the book had suggested.

"A Visored is a Shinigami who has obtained Hollow powers. It was the result of a rather unfortunate experiment and they were banished from Soul Society when it was discovered. Not that it was their fault of course."

Harry nodded before another thought came to him. "What's Soul Society? I've only read the Menos chapter about Hollows but it was mentioned multiple times, just like something called Gotei 13." He really tried hard not to butcher that foreign name but Urahara's hidden chuckles told him otherwise.

"Soul Society is the home of Pluses and within it lies the Seireitei, where the Shinigami live. The Seireitei is divided into thirteen factions, called the Gotei 13, or 13 court guard squads." Noticing Harry's impending question, he continued. "The Gotei are court guard squads because we answer to the Spirit King, but I think that's enough about that. What I want to know is how you ended up like that, little wizard."

Ah, the impending and unavoidable question. He knew that if Urahara wasn't going to kill him, he was the most likely person to be able to help him out.

"Well, I had something called a magical inheritance on my 16th birthday where every witch and wizard gains access to their full magic. Sometimes creature blood gets activated too and I ended up with a hole in my chest.

I didn't really look much different then but the more I was around magic, the more weird things started happening. At first I was seeing magic like sparks instead of just being invisible when it's not in spell form and then this started appearing." He traced the mask with his fingers gingerly. He didn't like touching it because it felt so weird. Skin wasn't supposed to be hard like that.

"Ooh, that certainly is interesting…" He could almost see the wheels turning in Urahara's mind. "A magical Hollow, that certainly will stir things up," The man mused silently.

"Have you tried using your powers yet?" The question startled Harry out of his observations and he shook his head.

"No, I've only just gotten into this room because everyone seems to think I'm doing something like Dark Magic and that that's why I'm like this now. I'm just lucky no one's seen the hole in my chest yet. That would've been a total disaster." Absently he scratched his elbow, wincing when he saw light green tinted powder escape his sleeve and float around him.

He hadn't paid much more attention to that actually but there were definitely two small clouds of the stuff forming and it was coming off of him. The clouds didn't have a shape yet but he was willing to bet they would after all the magical powder came off of him. Little did he know that powder was actually made out of spirit particles, a fact Urahara picked up on immediately.

"That powder coming off of you, do you know what it is?" Harry looked up in surprise. No one else had been able to see it thus far...

"No, I have no idea actually. It started a little while before my mask started showing up. It feels weird, like I'm disintegrating but that's impossible, so…" He stilled at Urahara's look. Oh.

"That dust is called spirit particles and happen when a Plus is turned into a Hollow. The particles create the Hollow's body, but I believe you read that?" Harry nodded, biting at his lip nervously. Was he going to vanish or turn into a full Hollow?

"Yeah, I did read that. But I'm already getting a mask now, what does that mean? And as far as I know, I'm not dead." Urahara nodded, taking in that information. Obviously the magic of the boy had something to do with this, including that Hollow was apparently in his blood. Perhaps he would become something not unlike the Arrancar then.

"You should read the next chapter then. I believe the part about Arrancars may very well be what you are turning into, rather than a normal Hollow, Menos or Adjuchas." Harry nodded, stifling a yawn as he realised just how late it was. The time was already nearing two in the morning and he knew he would have to at least attend classes tomorrow.

"Ara, it seems to be rather late for you, right Harry-kun? You're European?" The boy nodded, replying that he was from England, receiving an understanding nod from Urahara. "I see, I am from Japan. I'm not sure why we are able to understand each other so well but it must be a magic thing then. You should go to sleep. Perhaps you could find someplace to practice a few things like Cero? Don't worry if you don't get it right away though."

He nodded again, though he doubted he'd be able to do something like that. The only thing he was familiar with was magic after all, how was he supposed to use whatever these Hollow powers tapped off of? Unless it was his magical core, but somehow he doubted that. Hollows were technically dead so they couldn't have a magical core.

"How about you stay up a little later your evenings and I get up a little earlier and we'll be able to practice together. I'm sure I can help you figure something out. For now, you should go to bed young man."

Harry's wide-eyed expression only brought a chuckle from the other, but really, was it so unexpected for Harry to be amazed? He was so used to being kept in the dark and having to carry most of his burdens by himself but now there was someone actually willing to help him, even if he did live on the other side of the world.

"Thank you sir, I'd be delighted! Good night."

"Oyasumi, Harry-kun."

With that the connection broke and he was left staring at his own reflection. Even he had to chuckle when he spotted his own awed expression. He might actually have found someone to help him deal with this mess… Someone who didn't think this was his fault and didn't think he was practicing dark magic. Perhaps… Just perhaps he should simply tell everyone the mask is a latent reaction to his inheritance and that he had felt changes back then.

He wasn't about to just show them he had a hole running through him, but perhaps the professors simply wouldn't know what he had become and he could go back to his usual life? He certainly could dream… And dream he did, when he closed his eyes that night once more.

* * *

 **A/N: All right, Urahara finally showed up! How do you think he'll be able to help Harry? Not to worry though, he's far too interested in a magical Hollow to allow the Shinigami to find out about him and destroy the poor boy.**

 **Leave a review with your thoughts and thanks for reading!**

 **Until next time,**

 **Love,**  
 **~Lumina**


	8. So This Is The Thanks I Get

**A/N: Hey guys and welcome to chapter 8! They 'day' chapters will probably be a little boring still but not to worry, we'll be past that soon enough and we do need the build-up for what I've planned~ Finally I've been able to implement the Vacío. They are a concept I invented so I'd be grateful if they aren't borrowed without permission.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

The next morning found Harry excited beyond what he had been in quite a while.

He knew the day would still be far from pleasant but at last he had something to look forward to and enjoy! Even though that Urahara guy looked kind of weird and used to be someone who killed Hollows or a living (or not?), he still felt safe enough to have the man instruct him.

Besides, there was no one else he could learn from and it wasn't like the other knew exactly where he was. Not to mention he was bound to be hard-pressed to even find Hogwarts, let alone enter it and discover the Room of Requirement. Harry knew he was safe so there would be no problem. Not concerning his training as a Hollow at least.

Alas, that wasn't the end of his problems.

Harry hesitantly stepped out the doors, glad the room of requirement had been able to fetch his things for him and make them appear there instead of forcing him to make the trip back to Gryffindor tower. He didn't want to face the scathing looks.

His friends refused to believe that this transformation hadn't been caused by something he did and considering how Ron had turned on him after the tournament, he knew they would start believing the rumours about Dark magic.

 _'No, don't believe in that shit Potter! You're better than this.'_ He nearly revelled at the feeling of contentment welling up in him, though he knew that was his instinct. _'You did nothing wrong so hold your head high, they can't prove you did something illegal because you didn't.'_

Satisfied with his little pep talk he nodded to himself and entered the great hall, where pleasant talking and whispers fell silent almost right away. Normally that would have caused him to try to be as unnoticeable as possible while his heart sinks to his stomach but really, why should he hide from them? He was stronger now, mentally and physically. This evening he'd start his training and then he could show them that they shouldn't randomly accuse Harry Potter of things he didn't do.

He seated himself at the end of the Gryffindor table and ate his breakfast, seemingly unbothered by what was going on around him. That was why he missed the headmaster's narrowed eyes when Harry walked out of the hall again.

* * *

The day passed fairly quietly, though the whispers still followed him. It wasn't until his History of Magic class that he realised how he had been acting and thinking.

No, feeling superior and untouchable like this wasn't like him at all. His inner Hollow seemed to pout at him, having enjoyed this little outing of confidence greatly. Still, Harry knew that the only thing he had ever been able to truly hold onto was his sense of self and his morals. Just because he was turning into a Hollow didn't mean he could simply abandon those.

When the class was over and everyone woke from their usual naps, he noticed Ron and Hermione leaving without even sparing him much of a glance. Something was definitely wrong there.

Even though he knew it was most likely wiser not to confront them, he still rushed after them, calling their names in the hope they would stop.

Almost to his surprise, they actually did.

"What is it, Harry?" It bothered him how strained her posture and voice were, but Ron's defensive stance didn't help assuage his worries.

"I've noticed you guys have been keeping a distance from me… Why? You know I'd never practice Dark magic." He was nervous but managed to hide it well, seeming only casual. Much to his annoyance Draco was standing a little away and seemed to be able to read him just fine. Well, he wasn't able to put up a façade as strong as a Slytherin either so he supposed that was good, in a way.

"Do we know that? That freakish mask thing on your face is already proof enough Harry! What else are we supposed to believe?" Ron cut in before Hermione could reply. Well, at least now he knew what they really thought.

"Is that what you think of me? You'd believe rumours set off by _Malfoy_ over your own best friend? I guess I should've expected something like that from you after fourth year, but you Hermione? That's really low." Harry could only look at them in disappointment, though he could feel the betrayal floating just behind his already mediocre self-control.

He wanted to lash out to them and explain that it came from his magical inheritance, but he just couldn't find the right words. He could even vow he hadn't done any Dark magic, but then what was the point? Hogwarts students were very stubborn in holding on to rumours and such. He'd just have to live with it. Come next year they'd all see they were wrong. He just knew it.

"Face it Harry, even the headmaster thinks you've done some sort of ritual. There's no way he's wrong about this." That hurt. He already knew Dumbledore suspected something but to have it blown in his face like that…

 _Did I just lose my friends and my mentor in the timespan of day?_ He bit his lip to contain himself before his gaze turned cold.

"You're wrong. I don't care what you believe though, in the end, we'll see who was speaking the truth. But at that point, don't try to come crawling back for forgiveness. You're no longer people I call friends."

With that he turned away, going to the astronomy tower instead of lunch. He didn't want to have to deal with the staring faces right now.

* * *

 _Why won't this bloody itch just leave me alone?!_

Harry paced in front of the room of requirement, hoping to get in and shower as soon as possible to get rid of the itch. He'd been stuck with it all throughout the day after his visit to the astronomy tower, though it had certainly helped to clear his thoughts. The encounter with Ron and Hermione had shaken him, despite the fact he had shown it as little as he could.

Maybe now they thought he was heartless, but he couldn't find it in him to care. Technically he was becoming at least a little heartless, since he had a hole in his chest and the mask was forming. He knew it wasn't supposed to form like that but he always had been a bit of a special case, surviving things he shouldn't.

The clouds of spirit particles around him had been becoming more substantial as well but he didn't want to ponder on the loss of his body.

The doors appeared and he quickly slipped in, heading for the extra door that lead to the bathroom. Once there he relished in spending time under the hot water. Even more particles came off of him, but he didn't think on it. Harry had enough of panicking for now.

Once he stepped out of the shower, he looked at the hole again. It was still as noticeable as it had been when it formed and the mask seemed to gain a deeper outline now as well, as if it were slowly inching towards the surface. He didn't want to think about his skin breaking either though.

"It looks like there are a lot of things I don't want to think about…" He mumbled to himself as he got dressed and tied his hair back.

Once he stepped out, he nearly tripped over two dog-sized creatures lying in front of the door perfectly content.

"What the bloody hell—?!"

One of them yawned and barked at him. He noticed it had a sleek, white fur with a green shine to it. Its face was flat and bore a Hollow's mask, so did the other one. They both bore a shining green lightning bolt on their necks as like a mark of possession. What the hell was going on?

Another bark and one of them nuzzled against him. He could hear a now voice floating through his mind suddenly, a disembodied one.

 _'Don't worry master, we are here to protect.'_

What kind of Hollow creature protected anything?! Aside from Harry maybe, but that was beside the point.

 _'We were made from your body.'_  
 _'You don't need a Hollow's body because of your magic.'_  
 _'Your magic sustains you, and us.'_  
 _'We feed off of magic and reiatsu, Master.'_  
 _'You have nothing to worry about.'_

The voices were certainly different and belonged to both of them, reminding him of Fred and George's twin-speak.

So they were what happened to his body, huh? Then they were the two clouds that had been following him all this time and when he had showered, the rest of the particles must have been released. It looked like being a wizard was going to cause a lot more changes than he had anticipated in the first place.

"What about my body, then?" Harry asked in confusion. He hadn't lost it and as far as he knew he wasn't in spirit form either. Weird.

 _'Your magic is strong.'_  
 _'Your magic gives you your body now.'_  
 _'Others can still see you like this.'_  
 _'It'll seem like nothing has changed.'_  
 _'But you have us now.'_  
 _'We will protect you and grow stronger with you.'_  
 _'We will become many.'_  
 _'We will become all.'_

Whoa okay, that definitely had his mind reeling. The good news was that he was still relatively normal thanks to his magic. Others could still see him and touch him, though he gained very mysterious bodyguards who made little to no sense at all. Especially concerning that last bit.

He shoved those thoughts out of his mind. Again, too much stress and panic.

"What are your names?" And now to hope he wouldn't be met with another riddle-like twin-speak session.

 _'We are Vacío.'_  
 _'We are emptiness.'_  
 _'We have no proper names.'_  
 _'We have no need for them, because we are always changing.'_  
 _'We are one.'_

Okay, confusing but not entirely.

"So I can just call you Vacío then?"

Twin nods told him all he needed to know before ruffling the top of their heads. He had expected their bodies to be hard, but they were actually rather soft.

"I think I'll go read a little until midnight. You guys are free to roam around here but don't go outside unless I call you, okay? It's not safe for you and I already have enough rumours to deal with." He only mumbled the last bit as he picked up last night's book and started reading again.

 **Chapter 2 - Arrancar**

...

* * *

 **A/N: Thanks everyone for reading, reviewing etc~**

 **I had fun writing the last bit especially since I wanted to implement the Vacío during the confrontation with Draco, but that ended up being about the mask, whoops. Still, it turned out better like this I think because now I actually found a reason for them to turn up. Goodbye plothole for the Vacío xD**

 **No Urahara just yet I'm afraid but he'll be here in the next chapter. Wouldn't want a bombardment of information, now would we? x3 Anyway, I'll be busy all weekend including Friday so I won't be starting on Chapter 9 until Monday. I could probably use a break from all this writing anyway xD**

 **Please leave a review to let me know your thoughts about this chapter and I'll see you guys soon!**

 **Love,  
~Lumina**


	9. And So We Begin - Training Part 1

**A/N: Hey guys and welcome to chapter 9. I know I said I wouldn't post before Monday but I had a bit of inspiration after all and managed to push through and get this done. I'm far too nice to you guys with my quick chapters, aren't I? Again, thank the Snowflake method, otherwise these would all take ages and be of lot lesser quality!**

 **Anyway, Enjoy!**

* * *

"—rry-kun? Harry-kun!"

He jumped up for his seat immediately, a book clattering to the floor as he finally heard the voice calling out to him. Was it midnight already?

His gaze shifted through the now candle-lit room to find two white masks staring at him, the origin of the grinning he heard.

"Great, even you're laughing at me." Harry huffed playfully before setting the book aside and sitting in front of the mirror. One swipe with his finger along the runes and he found it activated.

"Hello, Mr Urahara." The oncoming yawn was stifled as quickly as possible while he rubbed at his eyes. It looked like he had fallen asleep while reading, though he was sure he had tried not to.

"Ah, did I wake you up?" The other asked him rather jovially, before Harry realised it was morning for the other.

"Yeah but don't worry about it." He stretched as he worked the sleep from his body.

"Did anything interesting happen today?" Urahara asked, holding a fan in front of his face for some reason that Harry was unaware of.

"Yeah actually. I know why the spirit particles were gathering. Vacío, come here." The two dog-like creatures jumped up from their resting place and settled on either side of the young wizard.

 _'Oh so this is the Shinigami.'_  
 _'Shinigami aren't safe...'_  
 _'But this one is different.'_  
 _'Something happened for sure.'_  
 _'He's been around Hollows...'_

Harry tilted his head in confusion before shrugging it off. If Urahara wanted to talk about it, then that point would come.

"How fascinating! What are they?" Urahara snapped him out of his thoughts, looking at the two Hollow-like creatures intently. Unlike regular Hollows these were created through a mixture of magic and reiatsu, hence they bore no hole in their bodies and they fed only off of the two elements that created them, instead of souls.

"They're called Vacío. They showed up after class when the last of the spirit particles detached from me. They can talk to me mentally and they said that my body is staying like this and is still visible to people because of my magic sustaining it. It's kind of like an illusion I suppose."

Harry explained quickly what had happened and that the two had a tendency to say mysterious things like 'We are one,' and 'We will become many,' and that the two would become stronger as he did.

Satisfied with that explanation, they moved on to other things.

"So, did you read about the Arrancar, Harry-kun?"

The boy nodded, remembering the passages he had read, specifically the one about their powers and their weak points.

* * *

 _Like Shinigami, Arrancar have a multitude of combat skills and abilities, some of which are similar to those of the former, and some of which are variations on ordinary Hollow powers._

 _ **Bala:** A technique that fires hardened spiritual pressure. Less powerful than a Cero, but can be successively fired at 20 times the rate._

 _ **Cero:** A powerful spiritual light fired by Menos Grande and Arrancar._

 _ **Descorrer:** A technique used by Espada-level Arrancar, and sometimes others, to open a Garganta between the living world and Hueco Mundo._

 _ **Hierro:** An Arrancar's outer skin with high spiritual hardness that serves as armour._

 _ **High-Speed Regeneration** is an ability which allows Arrancar to heal most injuries very quickly, with the exception of the destruction of the head or vital organs._

 _ **Pesquisa:** An Arrancar's ability to measure and locate Reiatsu._

 _ **Resurrección:** Releasing the core of an Arrancar's ability sealed in their Zanpakutō to regain the original powers of their Hollow form. They often take on a form closer to a Hollow than a Human after performing Resurrección._

 _ **Sonído:** is a movement technique which allows the user to move faster than the eye can follow. The focal point, which determines the basis of this technique, is speed. As speed is the main factor of the technique, the method is best characterized by how fast one can get from point A to point B in the least amount of steps._

 _ **Caja Negación:** A tool used by Espada to punish their subordinates. It traps its subject eternally in a closed dimension._

* * *

 _ **Zanpakutō:** The Arrancar seal the nuclei of their abilities within the form of a sword. It is entirely different from what Shinigami use. When they release their Zanpakutō's seal, they unleash their true power and their true form. The combat efficiency of an Arrancar with a released Zanpakutō is increased several times over. Therefore, an Arrancar's release of their Zanpakutō is merely a temporary restoration to their former selves, granting them any powers their Hollow form possesses. The act of release is called Resurrección, which is activated with a command phrase followed by the name of the sword. An Espada's Resurrección is claimed to be different from that of a normal Arrancar._

 _ **Physiology:** It is theorised that Arrancar share not only the powers of Shinigami, but also their anatomy. A recorded battle has proven that when aiming for the area where the Chain of Fate would be located, the Arrancar would not only lose their release form and mask fragment, but seemingly all trace of their former powers._

 _ **Estigma:** the pattern on an Arrancar's face. It is potentially the remaining part of a mask and is unique to each individual. The pattern may appear when performing Resurrección for many Arrancar._

 _ **Hole:** one of the most distinctive characteristics of an Arrancar is the hole in their body. It is said to represent the lack of a heart that is difficult to fill._

* * *

"Very well, we should try practicing something then, no?" Urahara simply smiled that odd smile of his, though Harry really had no clue what to do.

 _I need a place to train my Hollow powers._ Suddenly the rest of the room faded away, leaving them in a rocky ground similar to Urahara's own training grounds, but then a Hueco Mundo version of it.

Next to him not only the mirror remained but also a pallet with a sword had appeared, as well as possible targets and dummies.

A whistle distracted him from looking around. "Wow, that looks quite impressive."

Harry chuckled softly. Seeing the room for the first time had amazed him as well. "This is the Room of Requirement. It can change into anything you need."

It was easy to see Urahara was more than a little impressed but Harry's eyes kept being drawn to the sword. A katana, he corrected mentally. It was something to train sword fighting with, as he would definitely use one later. Being an Arrancar meant he would get one, in time. He knew he wasn't ready to try something like that though, especially considering the sword just felt _wrong,_ even without touching it.

"So, what am I supposed to do?"

All night, until the early morning hours, Urahara instructed him on how to begin training to master his Sonído, as well as long-range aiming. That was tested through the use of both his wand and wandless magic as Harry couldn't cast a Cero or Bala yet.

"Ah, Harry-kun, I was wondering something…"

The teen turned away from the remains of the targets, which quickly vanished and were replaced. "What is it?"

"Well, Cero or Bala may be too much of a direct switch from magic to reiatsu-based spells so why don't you try casting Kidō?"

At Harry's confused look, he quickly explained.

 _"Kidō is a form of Shinigami combat based on advanced spells. These spells fall into two categories: Hadō for direct attacks, and Bakudō for battle support. Kidō spells are triggered by an incantation. Experienced users can trigger them without an incantation, though the effectiveness of the spell will be diminished."_

Having somewhat understood that, he nodded though he still had no idea what to do.

Urahara simply chuckled, apparently having read that off of his face. "Don't worry, I'll lead you through the incantations. We're going to start off with the Hadō spells, since you won't have anyone to practice Bakudō on."

"I want you to point at the centre of that target and focus on the energy inside you, magic if you will, but preferably the new powers, your reiryoku. _Reiryoku is a power aligned with the spiritual sensitivity and willpower of the user. It is used by Shinigami and other spiritual beings to provide power for their various abilities._ "

Nodding in vague understanding, he pointed to the target and concentrated. The only times he had sensed what he thought to be reiryoku was when he passed through the wards and he focused on that feeling, trying to recall it's essence instead of it's oppressive feeling. Apparently it was working.

"Very good, Harry-kun. Now don't lose your concentration. I want you to gather a bit of that energy in your fingertip. It will be expelled towards the target when you say the spell. By the looks of things you have more than enough reiryoku to not say the incantation."

Harry only nodded, feeling the energy move slowly through his magical channels and into his finger. When he felt he had gathered enough he opened his eyes and took aim again. "Hadō #1. Shō!"

He gasped when he felt the energy suddenly be expelled from his body, racing at the target before blasting it away rather forcefully.

"Wonderful, wonderful! You will need to practice how much reiryoku you use, but I think this will go very well. Want to try another one?"

Before Harry could even reply, Urahara began explaining another.

"Hadō #4. Byakurai, is similar to Shō, though the concentrated reiryoku becomes a strong bolt of lighting. It can be used to both long and close range."

Harry once again focussed, this time keeping the fourth Hadō in mind. He noticed the energy was already preparing to become a different spell than the first, as if it was his intent shaping the spell, rather than the words. Much like magic, actually.

"Hadō #4. Byakurai!" A bolt of lightning shot out of his finger but as soon as it was finished he hissed, waving his finger as he felt it burn slightly. The target had been obliterated completely, though he could see how uncontrolled it had been. The lightning had decided to zigzag a little rather than form a straight line as it was supposed to.

One last Hadō for the night was Shakkahō, for which they did use an incantation, just in case Harry would be burnt again, at least until he learned better control. Hadō #1. Shō would help with that has Harry could harmlessly control the amount of reiryoku flowing to his finger without becoming singed.

He aimed and stood firmly with an open palm, his free hand resting on his wrist for extra focus. The incantation was a bit long and lame for his tastes but it was a safety precaution he knew he needed. Reciting it a few times mentally, he felt ready enough to practice the spell.

" _Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on to the south!_ Hadō #31. Shakkahō!"

This time the ball of flames formed correctly, though it only hit the side of the target. Harry's task until he felt too tired was to learn the incantations by heart and practice his aim as well as the amount of reiryoku he channelled. He practiced another hour before deciding to call it a night; it was already 3 in the morning after all.

Once the connection was broken and the room returned to normal, he moved to the shelf, wondering if there was a book about Kidō in here, Hadō specifically. Two books flew out and in front of him, allowing him to pick a rather thick tome with explanations on what the spells did and how they were supposed to feel before being expelled into the Kidō being performed.

He took notes on a spare piece of parchment, deciding that doing so would help him remember. When he was done a bed appeared on one side of the room and he gratefully fell down on it, utterly exhausted. Using Kidō was a lot more tiring than it had seemed.

He would be forced to come out of the room and deal with the world again tomorrow after all, and he didn't want to at all.

 _Why can't I just stay here forever?_

* * *

 **A/N: Thanks everyone for reading and reviewing. To a curious reviewer, yes Harry will indeed have a Zanpakuto but it'll take quite a while before he gets one. Magic likes to interfere a lot in the process after all~**

 **If you have any comments or questions, leave them behind in the review box, reviews are a writer's fuel!**

 **See you guys soon! (And this time I really won't post until Monday.)**


	10. Cero

**A/N: Hi guys and welcome to Chapter 10! I'm very glad the last nine chapters were so enjoyed by my reviewers and I'd like to thank you all for leaving said reviews, they make me very happy! :)**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

"Hey Potter, where were you last night? Off practicing dark magic again?"

He could feel anger welling up inside of him but even more present was the betrayal he felt when Ron shot those words at him. That Hermione admonished him for it didn't change anything. He knew she believed Harry was doing something, may or may it not be dark magic.

"What I do with my life is of no concern to you." Harry shot back coldly while brushing past his former best friend. Though if he were to be honest with himself, hadn't Ron always been like that? Just never really to Harry until their fourth year and after that the redhead had come crawling back with a meagre apology. _That won't happen again,_ said the voice inside of him and Harry was hard pressed to disagree. Ron didn't deserve another second chance; neither did anyone else for that matter.

 _I don't need them._

A small smile spread on his lips and just before he entered the hall he closed his eyes, feeling Vacío present next to him. When they had seen Harry's nervosity that morning they once again asked to come along. Apparently they were able to remain invisible to protect their master better, so that was what they were doing. So far it was working out well.

As he walked into the great hall he was relieved to find everyone ignoring him completely, rather than growing silent. Perhaps they were getting used to the changes on him? He chanced a look at the head table and found Dumbledore looking right at him again. Something told him the old man wasn't about to leave him alone just like that.

Hang on, old man? Harry never thought of the headmaster like that! So why—

The Vacío stirred and growled softly so only Harry would hear. Something was going on, his weirdly negative thoughts about the headmaster could wait. He glanced at them but when they didn't seem to be doing anything, he reached for his drink.

 _'Master!'_  
 _'No!'_  
 _'It smells off!'_  
 _'There is something different inside...'_

What in the world? When he took a light sniff of the drink he recognised one of the potions Snape had had them working on a lot. Compulsion potions…

Being in the fumes for so long made it easier for them to recognise the smell at least and it usually blended well enough with whatever you mixed it in, but you could still smell it if you were careful enough. Was that why Snape had given them those lessons?

He set the cup down again and took a bit of his food instead, noticing the Headmaster's look had somewhat darkened. _Did the headmaster just try to feed me a compulsion potion?_ Not good...

* * *

During his classes and the rest of the afternoon, Harry poured himself over his homework and magic-related tomes. He knew that even if he was capable of wandless magic, that didn't mean he would be able to do just about anything. Practice was important and looking through the 'Standard Book of Spells' would probably help him perfect some old spells and begin learning a few new ones. Especially the DADA section was leafed through a lot, considering it as unfortunately the field he needed the most.

His practice the night before with reiatsu levels also caused him to begin noticing the flow of energy when he cast a spell. He tried manipulating it and noticed that most of the time he used a bit more magic than needed, which was the reason easier spells tended to take some time before he learned them. Maybe now that would improve?

His theory was proven correct during his Transfiguration class when after a few tries of manipulating the intent and amount of magic the spell required, the bird did indeed transform into a teacup. A rather good one even. He was one of the first to have gotten it, second only to Hermione, whom immediately fumed in his direction despite the fact she had gotten it first.

Harry's attempt was disregarded by McGonagall as she passed by, though she certainly narrowed her eyes at him. After all, why would Potter all of a sudden have gotten better at casting new spells without some sort of aid? Murmurs spread through the class pretty soon after that but Harry simply ignored them and wrote down his notes for the day.

He found a ball of paper being shot at his head suddenly from the other side of the classroom, and there was no way he could stop it in time or dodge when all of a sudden; the paper was deflected by thin air.

Harry looked just as surprised as the others before smiling and mentally thanking his companions. It would not have done him any good to have that prop hit its target. Even if a simple piece of paper looks innocent, the fact it would have hit him meant that it was possible to do so outside of class as well, meaning the hexes would increase in the hallways again.

Now however, it was shown that catching Harry Potter off guard didn't work either, so people were more likely to think twice before attacking him randomly. They would still attack him though; there was no doubt of that.

He managed to avoid more trouble for the rest of the day, though he knew his time was rather limited. His peace in the room of requirement would only take so long before he was caught and dragged out of his safe haven.

That night he checked to make sure all of his items were actually in his trunk, which had appeared alongside the bed last night. To his gruelling annoyance both the invisibility cloak and the marauder map were missing. He wondered briefly if he could ask the room to give them back to him, but he doubted that. The only other option, was…

"Vacío, go fetch the things that were stolen from my trunk, all right? They're very important to me so I need them back."

The Vacío, eager to have something new to do, rushed off through the walls to Gryffindor tower. It would be easy to track their master's scent there and take the stolen items.

Getting into the tower unnoticed was easy but just for the fun of it, they became visible after grabbing their desired items. Watching the redheaded traitor and his friends scream in terror as the Vacío disappeared through the wall had been very amusing for them. Back in the Room of Requirement, they eagerly told the tale, though Harry was nervous this would only create more rumours.

 _What they think doesn't matter; they are fools and cowards. Even if they know the truth, they will alienate you— us more._

He knew the voice was right, if they knew he was a Hollow, more specifically an Arrancar, then he would be in a lot of trouble. He was a myth-class creature to the Ministry after all, who knows what kind of things they would do to him...

And he was pretty sure they would find out soon; it was just that bad feeling in the back of his mind telling him time was running out. And it was running out fast.

* * *

That night he was drilled in some more Hadō before they moved on.

"Did you learn to feel the difference between your Kidō and your magic?"

The answer to that was an obvious yes; the magic felt very different from the reiryoku, though he couldn't explain how. It was a difference in intensity, thickness and something else, almost like texture…

"Very good, then I want you to focus on your reiryoku now. Don't push it to feel like Kido, just let it form in the palm of your hand and make sure to aim in the distance. The first time might either blow up a lot or simply not work, but don't worry about that."

Though harry tried to pool the energy in just one hand, he felt it pooling in both; his arms rising to hold the ball as one. He wanted to fight that instinct but found himself interrupted by Urahara.

"Let your instincts take over Harry-kun, they will only help you."

And he did. He closed his eyes and felt the usually silent voice raise power within him, guiding it into the Cero he was preparing. His body moved on its own as he stood ready to fire. The energy ball reached its peek and the next thing he knew, Harry was slammed backwards a good few metres.

When the dust cleared and he looked up, there was a rather huge chasm in the ground where the Cero hit, and a hole in the wall on the other side of the room. It was rather obvious that was far away.

"Whoa…"

Urahara whistled softly in amazement as well. "Not bad at all, Harry-kun. That's a very strong Cero. I'd like for you to practice it more but since it takes a lot of power and you're not used to this, we might want to slow things down a little. At least you know how it's supposed to feel now."

Harry nodded, sitting down in front of the mirror since he did need the break. "Urahara, sir, there was something I wanted to talk to you about…" He started nervously. He didn't like turning points; they always set him on edge. What if the man said no? And what if he said yes? He didn't even know how he was going to pull off what he had in mind...

"What is it, Harry-kun?"

"I was wondering if I could come visit you in Japan soon."

The man's startled expression was rather amusing, but Harry was too tense to really be able to laugh about that.

"Come here? But don't you have school, young man?"

"I do, but there are a lot of tensions right now and according to the government here, a Hollow is a creature from myth. I'll be in a lot of danger if anyone finds out. They already accuse me of casting dark magic because of my mask coming out of my skin like this." He traced it gently, finding it less odd every time, though it was still definitely odd.

"If I don't leave soon, I might be imprisoned and tested on for all I know. They're not going to accept me, my instinct knows that too."

There was no way Urahara would be able to argue with instinct, he knew that.

Finally the man nodded. "I suppose if you feel so strongly about it, there is little that can be done. How will you be getting here?"

* * *

Harry was incredibly relieved that Urahara was willing to have him, though he knew the man was very curious about being able to examine Harry up close. He didn't mind that though, because he knew Urahara would be respectful with him, unlike the Ministry and the Unspeakables would be. He knew that that was where he'd end up, from boy who lived to freaky Hollow and test subject. The Daily Prophet would have a field trip with that headline...

He explained that he wanted to escape Hogwarts and go to the Gringotts branch in London. There he would be able to secure a portkey to Japan without too much trouble. After all, the Goblins were neutral and if they earned some money in letting Harry go to Japan then they wouldn't see the problem. They wouldn't be held under Dumbledore's thumb like the wizards were after all.

He already had most of it planned, but he wanted to try and stay at school for as long as possible. He didn't know why, but he knew that he should stay. Maybe something would happen or maybe not, but it was better if they didn't think he ran away because he wanted to practice dark magic.

Still, wasn't that what would happen regardless? Harry shook his head, there was nothing he could do but be ready and wait.

* * *

 **A/N: Thanks for reading and reviewing everyone, it was much appreciated.** **The tensions are rising and turning points are coming closer and closer. How well will Harry's trip to Japan go, how long will he be away and who will he meet? Find out soon!**

 **As always feel free to leave a review in the box below, they're my favourites~ ^^**

 **Until next time!**

 **Love,**  
 **~Lumina**


	11. Time To Go

**A/N: Hey guys and welcome to Chapter 11! This one was working against me a little but I've finally managed to break through and finish it. Such a mean chapter… Oh well, I managed and that's what counts! I'd like to thank everyone for your kind comments as usual~**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

The weekend passed without much of a fuss and Harry was happy to stay away from the rest of the student body while he continued practicing his Kidō, Cero and magic.

It wasn't until Monday dawned that things were ruffled up.

He woke to a loud banging against the door and judging by the cracks in the wall, the banging had been going on for a while already. Apparently Dumbledore and the others had figured out where he was staying. He hurriedly got dressed and willed the room to change into something resembling the Gryffindor common room. Appearances were appearances after all.

He opened the door from a distance, not wishing to be blasted back when it opened. Indeed the door slammed backwards into the wall and revealed a rather irritated Dumbledore, followed by the rest of the professors. He spotted Snape looking as annoyed at being dragged along for things like this as usual and had to withhold a chuckle.

"Good morning headmaster, is there a reason you've decided to attempt breaking down the door?" Granted it was Monday, which meant classes were soon to start but the clock on the wall said he still had an hour largely before classes started. Why Dumbledore insisted on dragging him out of bed already was beyond him. Had he been figured out?

"It's unacceptable for our students to stay away from their dorms Harry. Staying away like that will only cause more problems for you." It was obvious the headmaster was trying to collect himself and manipulate Harry again but that was hardly going to work on him now.

"Really? Because the way I see it I'm left alone so I can study without being glared at or judged for a crime I didn't even commit. As I've said many times, I'm not a practitioner of Dark magic." He looked in the old man's eyes as he said that, knowing Dumbledore would be able to see he wasn't lying.

Much to his surprise the headmaster's face remained exactly the same, still looking down on him like he was an ignorant child that just did something wrong. Who the hell did he think he is to treat Harry like that?! he could feel the reiatsu stirring inside of him, both his inner Hollow and his reiryoku reacting to his anger. A small wind began to pick up around him and much to his surprise, the teachers looked almost scared. As if he were some kind of demon.

 _Now that's really taking it too far_. He had done nothing wrong!

"Potter, calm down already!"

Snape's voice was devoid of the usual scathing edge and he looked on guard, worried even, but not scared. At least someone agreed with him, then. Looking past the professors he spotted Ron and Hermione peeking around a corner, trying to see what was going on. Really? How low were they going to stoop…?

"Why should I? Ever since this happened to me I've been nothing but ridiculed and accused of something beyond my control. I should be grateful though… Without this, I would never have realised whom I could trust." he turned to the headmaster. "If you people are smart, you'll leave me alone."

In a burst of reiatsu, the professors were driven to their knees and the two traitorous students were flat on the ground. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have better places to be." He twisted his wrist towards the room of requirement and the Hollow bookcase appeared again, several books flying out of it and into his trunk before his things shrunk themselves and floated into his pocket.

He focussed on wanting to get away as fast as he could, he didn't want to face them longer than he had to. Suddenly he was standing at the castle's entrance, completely confused about how he had gotten here. The only technique he could think of was Sonído, but he hadn't mastered it at all yet…

Trying to focus again, he realised the feeling he had earlier didn't return to him and sighed. "Just once, huh? Oh well."

His broom returned to it's normal size and he climbed on easily. Time to get going.

The safest place to be right now would be…

Gringotts.

* * *

Once he spotted the bank he began slowing down and finally realised exactly how exhausted he was. Not only had his encounter with the headmaster caused him to lose a lot of energy but so had the flight. From the Scottish countryside to London was quite a trip after all and he'd probably completed it in record time. One day's flight in about six hours… Not bad.

It wasn't until he had entered the bank that he allowed himself to collapse against a wall. Really, was it too much to ask to have a little bit of peace while he dealt with the unusual changes inside himself? Of course it was, he is Harry Potter after all.

Whispers broke out among the current visitors of the bank and with an annoyed growl, everything suddenly became quiet. Wandless and non-verbal silencing spell… All right then, that wasn't quite what he had expected. He was exhausted anyway, how was he still capable of casting magic?

"Mister Potter, if you could follow me for a moment."

He struggled to get up and indeed followed the Goblin to a separated room, which was apparently one of the discussion or negotiation rooms the bank was willing to rent to paying parties for sensitive discussions.

"If you could wait a moment, your account manager will be with you soon."

He had absolutely no idea why the goblin was being so borderline courteous to him, especially considering the way he had barged into the bank.

He took the break as a moment to catch his breath and think back on what had happened. Surely the Hogwarts rumour mill was already running wild about how he had been caught preparing a dark ritual and had been caught red-handed by the headmaster, which was of course total bull but that was exactly why it would be a popular rumour. And once rumours stick around long enough, they become truth to people until their notions are dispelled.

The exact same thing happened when he had been declared the Heir of Slytherin and when he had been accused of cheating to enter the Triwizard Tournament.

'And last year was Umbridge. I never get a break, do I?' he asked himself with a small chuckle. Really, it was laughable now that he was detached from the situation. _Good, they can't hurt you. You're above them after all._

Ah, so the voice was back too. 'Weren't you asleep or something…?' He wondered before the doors opened and another goblin entered, dropping a heavy ledger on the table.

"Mister Potter, we meet at last. I am Gripclaw, the Potter Account Manager. As I understand it, you need a secure way to Japan, do you not?"

Harry could only gape at the other in astonishment. "How… How did you know?"

"Well, aside from the fact we hold tabs on any sign of such old creatures, I already knew about your affliction the moment it happened. Your mother had noted an eventuality of this happening and spelled her letter to come to my attention if it had not been taken out of the Potter family vault yet. An Arrancar, how unusual…"

As weird as it was that this goblin already knew about him, the musing way in which he spoke about his rank in the Hollow hierarchy bode nothing but trouble in Harry's mind. Gripclaw made it sound like they were going to take him apart and experiment on him or something! He knew he was a very rare catch but still…

A laugh broke him out of his thoughts and he told himself he would be very happy to never hear such a sound again. "Not to worry young Mister Potter, we are not here to harm you. On the contrary, the ministry's reaction to you would be far more entertaining to observe. As things stand you should be emancipated first, since underage magical citizen aren't allowed to leave the country without parental permission."

"Luckily for you, the Ministry is made out of idiots, making your imminent emancipation a possibility. Your participation to the Triwizard Tournament already made you electable for emancipation, as well as your formal hearing at the Ministry. By trying you as an adult, they consented to the emancipation as well. I assure you this won't take long and you will find yourself incredibly satisfied you went through with this. Especially if our suspicions about a meddling old man prove to be true."

* * *

And so two hours later emerged _Lord_ Harry James Potter-Black, Heir to the Houses of Gryffindor and Slytherin, the latter by right of conquest.

"You have my portkey, then?"

In the last two hours Harry had been made the head of the Potter family as well as given the heir rings of Gryffindor and Slytherin, something that had come as quite a shock to him. He had even received the Black lordship through Sirius, making him his heir. He knew Sirius had made him his heir since Dumbledore had told him over a rather lacking letter during the summer but he hadn't quite known what that entailed at the time. Needless to say a lot of information had been left out...

Not only that, he had discovered that Dumbledore had been stealing from the only accessible vault he possessed at the time, his trust vault. As a result, all keys had been destroyed and he had been gifted with new ones, for a price.

Although Dumbledore's reasoning was still unknown, Harry knew he wasn't going to let him get away with such things. His vaults were all sealed off that day while his Portkey was prepared, courtesy of Gringotts. He also paid for a two-way mirror to communicate with the bank if dire circumstances were to arise, such as Dumbledore trying to get into his vaults. If he needed to pay for anything, Harry had a pouch that was keyed to only him; that way he'd be able to retrieve as much money as needed in Galleons, Pounds or Yen.

"Yes, everything's been prepared and the costs of everything have been retrieved from your vaults. We will take detailed inventory of your vaults and send them to you once finished." The goblin promised while handing him a golden medallion.

"This medallion can take you directly to Gringotts and to Karakura's station in the Ishikawa prefecture. You will be needing this as well." The goblin handed him an odd-looking potion, which seemed to have a rather tick consistency.

"This will help you understand everything that is said and written in Japanese as though it were English and it will help your capacity to learn the language in a shortened amount of time but I advise you do study it because taking much of this isn't healthy at all, it will only last three months as well, during which you will be expected to have mastered at least reading and speaking Japanese."

Great, more schoolwork to worry about… Though all things considered, it would probably be better this way rather than having to learn a language the usual way with Hermione on his back nagging about everything.

"Alright, thank you for all the trouble you've gone through to help me. It's been much appreciated."

The goblin nodded and simply grinned at him. "You will hear from us within the next week. To activate the portkey you must simply say 'Karakura, Japan' and to return to Gringotts, just say 'Gringotts, England'."

Without further ado, Harry activated the portkey. It wasn't until he arrived that he had the time to realise just how much of a bad idea that had been. Even with the family magicks stabilising him, the intense spinning had been much worse than what he experienced during regular portkeys, leaving him dry-heaving as he hadn't eaten anything yet that day either. 'How did I make it through all this without passing out again…?' He asked himself before doing just that.

* * *

 **A/N: Well, that was quite the adventure, wasn't it? We've finally made it to Japan! Wonder who Harry will meet? Stay tuned till the next chapter~ (And the rest of the story while you're at it, kay~?)**

 **For those asking me to continue and not discontinue the story, no worries! Like I've told a few reviewers before, I already have the entire structure of the fic planned out so I won't get bored with this one or go off track, since I already know where I'm going. This would be so much more difficult if I didn't know what I wanted to do with this ^^**

 **See you guys next time!**

 **Love,**  
 **~Lumina**


	12. Introductions

**A/N: Hello and welcome to Chapter 12! We've finally made it to Japan and will be exploring the Bleach side of things more. This is also where updates are likely to get a bit slower. I'm not used to writing most of these characters after all so writers block is likely to become a bit of a bother now ^^;**

 **As one of my reviewers has pointed out, Harry should have received the Black lordship as well during his time in Gringotts and I completely forgot about that. I've fixed it now though.**

 **On an extra note: Everyone will be speaking Japanese now and Harry can do the same thanks to the potion he was given in the last chapter, hence he will be inclined to address people with 'san' etc.**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

"Ah, Harry-kun, you've awoken. You gave us quite a scare when we found you at the station, completely unconscious, you know."

He groaned softly and tried to sit up but was immediately pushed back down onto what felt like a rather hard mattress, not that he wasn't used to such things though. 'Where am I…?' He wondered vaguely before the last day's memories flashed back to him.

Ah, so that's why the voice talking to him seemed so familiar...

"Urahara-san." He opened his eyes, trying to adjust to the light only to find that it was pretty dark already. "I'm sorry to have worried you."

The blond man simply laughed at him with that goofy smile he had gotten somewhat used to through the mirror.

"Don't you worry about it, you're safe after all. Ah, these are Tsukabishi Tessai, Hanakari Jinta and Tsumugiya Ururu; they help me around the shop."

The three in turn said hello, one rather large man that from this viewpoint seemed to be the same size as Hagrid; then again, Harry was lying on a very low bed by the look of things so his perception was slightly altered.

The other two looked to be around ten, one shy girl with black hair and another with red hair that seemed brighter than Ron's. he blocked that thought train immediately, not wanting to think about his old friends just yet.

"Hmm, you sure look weird though. What the hell is a mask fragment doing under your skin?" The red-haired kid— Jinta said, poking the mask like it was the most normal thing to do. The next thing he knew Jinta was yelling to be put down while the boar of a man, Tessai, held him up.

"Ma, ma, you shouldn't treat guests like that Jinta-kun. It's rude after all."

The boy simply huffed at his… boss'? friend's? reprimand. Tessai set the boy back down, whom immediately moved on to attacking Ururu for laughing at him, though she had been so silent about it; Harry almost hadn't heard her. These sure were some strange people…

Finally Harry took his chance to sit up, noticing he was wearing some sort of weird kimono, his robes folded in a corner of the room.

"I'm sorry you found me unconscious by the way. I hadn't eaten much yet and I was pretty tired because of the trip from the school to Gringotts. Portkeys can spin really heavily so I must've had a bad reaction to it. I've never been very good with them." He tugged somewhat nervously at his sleeve. Not only was being unable to handle portkeys embarrassing in the wizarding world but he was with people he didn't know at all now, leaving him pretty clueless on how to react.

Luckily Urahara picked up on it though.

"Not to worry Harry-kun, I'm sure it could have happened to anyone. After all, coming all the way from England to Japan seems like quite the trip." He turned to the others in the room, giving them a kind but remarkably stern smile.

"Now, why don't you all give us a minute so Harry-kun and I can catch up, hm?"

Surprisingly there wasn't a single protest as the three made to leave, something that would have never happened at Hogwarts. If he would have gotten a weird guest only he knew about, his friends would never have given them a moment just like that… Well, ex-friends.

'I suppose it hasn't really sunken in yet…' He thought sadly. When he had met them on the train for their first year at Hogwarts, he could never have imagined something like this was going to happen. Not at all...

"Harry-kun, did you hear me?"

He snapped out of his thoughts immediately, looking a bit sheepish.

"I thought so. I was asking you about what happened. I know we talked about you coming here but I didn't expect it to happen so soon." Something must have happened for the young boy to come here in such a short time…

"Yeah, well… You know I was staying in the Room of Requirement instead of the dorms because it was safer there than with my year mates. This morning, though I suppose it would have been yesterday now, the headmaster and the rest of the staff tried breaking into that room and force me to sleep in the dorms again. Even though I didn't break any rules and I didn't miss my classes…"

He sighed softly, pausing to collect his thoughts.

"When they came and tried to force me back into a place I knew I would be cursed all the time, I acted rashly and I ran away. I know I probably shouldn't have but I don't know what would have happened if I hadn't." Probably nothing good. He didn't mention losing his friends though, that was something he felt he had to cope with on his own.

Just as Urahara was about to reply, Vacío appeared, flanking their master.

 _'Don't think badly of it master.'_  
 _'You made the right choice in leaving.'_  
 _'They would have shunned you.'_  
 _'And now they are trying to hunt you.'_

They were trying to WHAT?! How dare they try to hunt him down like a common animal, only because they needed to 'set him right' and get back their Golden Boy of the Light? Well, wouldn't they be in for a surprise when they realised it was their fault he had stopped believing in them…

Urahara noticed Harry's dark look, surprised by the intensity hidden in those green orbs.

"What happened, Harry-kun?" Obviously nothing good, but it was better to ask. Harry seemed like a boy that wasn't too secretive if you were nice to him. It only made him wonder what could have angered him like this.

"Apparently the headmaster and his gang of idiots are trying to set up a man-hunt for me. They won't think to look outside of Britain though." He grumbled darkly, barely noticing that he had insulted the Order without even thinking about it.

This definitely didn't seem like regular Harry behaviour though. Urahara had seen the boy when they were training: kind, passionate and motivated. Right now he was cold and angry, looking as if he wanted to tear something into pieces. Harry was going to be a force to be reckoned with once he gained control of his powers… 'Well, that only means I'll have one more to look after. It should be fine.'

At least until the Shinigami spotted him… It was a good thing they were far too busy with a crisis of their own to deal with an odd Hollow.

"In that case there's nothing to worry about. You're safe here Harry-kun." Urahara smiled at him again, noticing it as helping to calm the boy doing. Well, wasn't he awfully conscious of who he was around when angered? Almost as if he knew he could cause a lot of damage but didn't want to. Something like that was hardly ever seen in children, especially those so young.

"You're free to stay here until you've gained better control over your powers. We have a training facility similar to what the Room changed into downstairs so any damage made is not a problem at all. So how about you rest up for now and tomorrow we can see how far you've gotten?"

Harry nodded, feeling rather tired. He had no idea what time it was even so it would be a good idea to sleep off the jetlag as well.

"Thank you, Urahara-san, I really appreciate the trouble you're going through for me." Harry said, glad to have calmed down as well. He didn't like being so angered; it meant he was giving more control to his inner Hollow...

"It's no trouble at all, Harry. Just sleep, we'll have some food for you when you wake up."

* * *

When Harry woke up the next day it was to the smell of sweet soup and fresh air. He was surprised at how refreshed he felt, really. Perhaps being out of a stressful environment helped with that?

He spotted a bowl of soup, some fish, rice and vegetables on a tray. Was that breakfast? Well, he was on the other side of the world now, they did have different customs and such…

His eyes narrowed when he spotted the chopsticks. How was he supposed to eat rice with two long pieces of wood? No fork, no spoon— No, there was a spoon. It had an odd shape though and was next to the bowl of soup. Well, that was going to go first then.

Once he started on the meal he was surprised at how good it all tasted, despite the fact it was a bit difficult to eat. He used the chopsticks to cut up the cooked meat only and then ate it with his hands since he had never operated chopsticks before and thus had no idea how to use them. The rice was consumed with help from the spoon. It was a really healthy yet filling meal, something he definitely wasn't used to with all the greasy food he was forced to make at the Dursleys. Hogwarts often had fairly greasy meals as well actually.

With that settled he changed into his robes, noticing his shoes were missing. Oh well, he'd find them later. For now, finding Urahara was his best bet.

When he stepped out the door he was met with a fairly long-looking corridor, how was he going to find his way in here? He didn't see how they had brought him here after all… Maybe he should just wander around and see if he could—

"Oh, you're awake."

He spun around quickly, only to spot the red-haired kid from earlier looking at him with a rather bored expression, though he was obviously amused with having startled Harry.

"Come on, I'll take you to the owner." Jinta said, turning around again immediately without waiting for their guest to follow.

Harry hurried to follow after him, knowing Jinta was currently his only way out of the confusing corridor.

They made their way to a sitting room with a low table and a bunch of cushions where Urahara was drinking something.

"He's finally up." Jinta announced carelessly, already half turned towards the door again.

"Ah, very good. Go help Ururu clean out the courtyard then. Tessai-san can keep an eye on you two."

"Oi, we don't need a babysitter!" Jinta protested immediately but left anyway when Urahara simply chuckled at him.

Not sure of what to do Harry sat down at the table, facing Urahara. He had no idea what the older man was planning though; he was used to training at Hogwarts, he wasn't used to actually training with someone there physically as he knew was going to happen from now on. He knew he had a lot of improving to do… At least he had all the time he would need now, right?

"Good afternoon Harry-kun. I believe we have a lot to talk about."

* * *

 **A/N: Thanks everyone for reading, reviewing etc, it's very much appreciated!**

 **Before I finish I want to clarify something, because it's getting annoying to me that people keep asking this. Like I've said before, the entire story has been planned out already and since there are no pairing brackets in the character mentions of this fic… There will be NO pairings.**

 **There, wanted to get that off my chest… Until next time!**

 **Love,**  
 **~Lumina**


	13. Hogwarts, Divided?

**A/N: Hello and welcome to chapter 13! Let's see what Dumbledore and the Order are up to, shall we?**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

Dumbledore looked through the room, taking note of a few of their members still missing. Once Severus swept into the room, he started.

"Welcome. I realise this is a rather impromptu meeting but we have a great problem on our hands. Yesterday morning, Harry potter fled Hogwarts and has been missing ever since."

Instantly the room filled with worried chatter, though Molly's voice was the sharpest and loudest as usual.

"What do you mean, missing? Explain yourself Albus! What could have happened to cause such a thing?"

Ah yes, the parents hadn't been informed of the changes in Harry just yet, he had altered the children's letters accordingly once he intercepted them. It wouldn't do to have such a thing come to the attention of the public or even the Ministry and the Dark Lord. Certainly having Tom know that Harry had been performing obscure rituals was not a good thing. He would have had many fiasco's on his hands had he not taken to filtering the children's letters to contain only innocent things, not related to the large incidents in Hogwarts that had been occurring even since Harry's first year. The troll and the basilisk were excellent examples of that.

"Harry has been found baring the results of an unknown but quite possibly very shady ritual, causing changes on his face and hiding his scar as well. As you all know I cannot condone Dark magic to be cast within Hogwarts. He had been missing from the Gryffindor dorms for several days as well and was found hiding in the Room of Requirement. The professors and myself tried to reason with him and have him return in the dorms but he refused and ran away."

"Nothing more than a foolish and stressed child's temper tantrum." Severus scoffed, earning a stern look from the headmaster. He knew the potions professor didn't believe Harry had done anything Dark but the way things were it was obvious Harry was guilty. He had even run away for Merlin's sake!

Molly was about to lash out vocally again but Arthur stopped her, sparing everyone's ears. Meanwhile several of their members eyed Snape suspiciously. Never had the man admitted to Potter being anything more than a brat and while he had said something similar, he also spoke of Harry being stressed; which was something the potions master would never had said under such circumstances. There was something the headmaster wasn't saying here… Tonks, Remus and Mad-eye shared a look across the room, they were definitely going to find out what was going on.

"Now, now Severus, this is something serious. We need to find Harry as soon as possible. I will keep the information from leaving the school, it is essential that Voldemort and the Ministry do not learn of this. If they do there will be dire consequences. For those of us working in the Ministry, if you can track Harry somehow then I want it done. Mudgundus, keep an ear open. If Harry truly is going Dark he will visit Knockturn Alley eventually. Molly, Arthur, if you can discover anything through your children I would be very grateful. If Harry writes them then I want you to tell me."

Everyone agreed readily and the meeting veered off into the different topics such as how to deal with the Death Eaters and Voldemort now that the Ministry finally acknowledged his return. Once everything was said and done, everyone returned home. Everyone but three whom cornered Severus in a nearby abandoned classroom.

"What happened to my cub?" Was the first thing out of Moony's mouth once the door was closed and charmed against prying eyes or ears.

"None of us know, Lupin so calm down. What I do know is that there is no chance Potter would be capable of casting Dark magic, especially the performance of a ritual. Not only did he not give off the general air of a beginner in Dark magic but according to what Draco told me, he didn't even know what was happening to himself and hadn't noticed."

"What're you talking about?" Tonks cut in confused about what changes Snape could be referring to.

"A sort of mask appeared under his skin recently, covering his eye and a part of his face as well. It's also what obstructed Potter's scar, which is what the headmaster referred to. Those fools simply refuse to see what's right in front of them. Potter didn't do this to himself."

The confidence with which he was defending Harry had several of those present snorting with amusement.

"Never thought I'd see the day where you defended Harry, Snape." Remus finally said, chuckling softly behind his hand only to be met with a harsh glare.

"I am not defending him. He is still an incurable brat just like his father but this is sheer idiocy and those who don't see it are blind." He sighed and uncrossed his arms, summoning a vial and holding his wand to his temple, extracting the memories he had of Potter gaining that mask. It had even been gradual… Dark rituals were almost always instantaneous.

"Watch this privately later. His reactions are nothing like how someone guilty would behave, not to mention even Potter would know not to leave behind such an obvious trace." He duplicated the memories and handed a vial to all three.

"We'll see Snape." Moody huffed, storing the vial away in his robes immediately. I agree something fishy is going on here but we'll have to wait and see."

With that the man turned and left, cueing the other two to follow as well, leaving Severus to his thoughts.

One could only wonder just where this mess was going to lead.

* * *

A bit further down the hall Molly and Arthur were discussing similar things, though from what they had seen from Harry until now, nothing could lead them to believe the boy had done something Dark. But what if he had? The headmaster wouldn't just lie like that and to cause Dumbledore to suspect Harry had performed Dark magic… The proof had to be pretty strong.

"Oh I hope Harry's alright. Who knows where he could be right now?" Molly said with slight desperation. She just wished Harry would have come to her during these troubling times. Even if Harry had changed, she loathed to believe she would have reacted so negatively without hearing him out.

Arthur was of a similar mind-set. Not to mention they owed Dumbledore the help in the tuition for their children as well as support throughout the years. If Dumbledore believed so strongly Harry had done some thing wrong, was it truly up to them to doubt him? No, he didn't think so.

Dumbledore was the leader of the Light; surely he wouldn't be wrong about something like this?

* * *

"Looks like Potter finally ran away." Malfoy said with a smirk when word spread from the Gryffindor table through the four houses. Considerate hums of agreement followed around him but it was easy to see that while most didn't care, the people he frequented were thinking into this a little more. Draco himself had eased up on bullying Potter when he realised just how shocked Potter had been to have that mask thing appearing through his skin. He had persevered with the taunts purely because it was expected of him, really. But in private, he thought something was wrong as well. Like a missing puzzle piece just waiting to complete the puzzle, but he couldn't grasp it.

His classmates' thoughtful expressions told him they had similar thoughts. Though really, they all wondered what it was that had happened to Gryffindor's 'Golden Boy' to cause the whole school to turn on him like that. As usual the Gryffindors were the first to turn tail, Weasley and Granger especially. Either they knew something or they were acting exactly the same way they had two years ago during the Triwizard Tournament. Really, why Potter had let them return to his good graces was beyond him.

When the two Gryffindors finally left the Great Hall, Draco and his friends followed after them. The two looked almost lost without Potter there to chaperone them, not to mention they were fighting again. How they ever became friends was just as large a mystery but really, if they wanted to go that route then why should he question that? A silencing charm or two and no one would have to suffer from it either.

"Finally lost your leader, have you; Granger, Weasley? Not that you were ever of much use, with or without him." He sneered at the two, who immediately turned to face Draco. Weasley already had his wand out while Granger was at least attempting to be diplomatic.

"Get lost Malfoy." Weasley shot at him, having lowered his wand like the pitiful dog he was, obeying his mistress. Actually ew, no, gross!

"Truly, I thought that was more your forte Weasel. Especially since you look the part now." He chuckled at the glares he was being given. Really, riling up Gryffindors was such fun. Riling up Harry Potter was a lot more amusing though, since he knew how to piss the other boy off. After a pathetic growl from the redhead, he continued.

"Really, one could wonder if you actually even know what Potter was up to. You were some of the first to cut him off after all, weren't you? And here I thought Gryffindors protected their own." The Slytherins did a much better job of that. Even the Ravenclaws had someone they cast out and bullied and while Slytherin did have its differences in members and such, problems were always resolved in the privacy of their common room.

"Shut up, this has nothing to do with you! For all we know you smuggled him stuff about dark rituals or whatever." Once again Weasley opened his trap and only idiocy spewed from it. Did that moron ever use his brain? Draco truly doubted it.

"Oh of course, and I opened the Chamber of Secrets as well, did I? While you're busy making up idiotic claims, we have classes to attend to. Not that they'd be of much use for you, eh Weasel?" He turned away and headed to his next lesson, there was no fun in this. It was more aggravating than anything else to have to soil his day with their presence. Perhaps it was time to cut ties with Gryffindor entirely…

Potter was bound to come back and the truth would be brought to light then, without a doubt.

* * *

Ron and Hermione fumed as Malfoy left, glaring at him as if that would bore a hole through the blond.

That particular Slytherin had always been good at riling them up, Ron more easily than the others considering he leapt before he looked. Hermione had remarkably been spared this time, not that she had really gotten a chance to say anything at all. They didn't know what had happened to Harry but for all they know he had been in cahoots with Malfoy. Or more likely, the room had provided him with the knowledge he needed.

Of course doing a ritual to end up with something like _that_ on his face made little to no sense at all but she was positive he had done _something,_ had it been a ritual or something else. She was offended he hadn't come to her for information or to simply tell her his worries. They were supposed to be the golden trio, always standing strong for each other but then Harry would go off and do something like this, tearing them apart.

Now only the duo remained but the way they saw it, having Harry along with them only dragged them down.

* * *

 **A/N: Well, such loyal friends eh? At least we now know not _everyone_ is against Harry, they're just easily influenced by Dumbledore. Funny how this causes the Slytherins to be the ones to believe in the 'Dark Magic' excuse the least.**

 **Thanks to everyone who reviewed and I'll see you in the next chapter!**

 **Love,**  
 **~Lumina**


	14. And so We Continue - Training Part 2

**A/N: Hello everyone and welcome to chapter 14! Sorry for the abrupt long wait but I've had a lot of stuff to do lately and this chapter really _hated_ working with me. I haven't quite figured out how to work out the fight and training sequences since I'm not used to writing them at all, hence this chapter and probably the next couple ones are going to take longer than usual to update. **

**Aside from that I have a convention coming up in about a week and I have a dress to finish making and all that con prep stuff so yeah, I probably wont be working on anything until the end of august, the con being on the 28th.**

 **With that said…**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

Harry was utterly exhausted.

Not only had Urahara made him demonstrate a huge amount of spells rapidly following one another, he had also been made to run a full lap around the entire training room, which was definitely nothing to sneeze at, and he had been made to demonstrate the Kidō he had mastered until now as well. All in all Harry was ready to drop and yet still the shop owner prodded him with an odd device the man had been tinkering with the past few days.

Honestly, couldn't the man give him a bit of a break?

He groaned when he could feel a bit of energy flowing out of him and glanced over at the man sitting next to him.

"What exactly is that…?" He asked slowly, not quite sure whatever that thing was nor if he wanted it anywhere near him if it lowered his already rather drained magic reserves.

"Oh nothing, just a little bit of research."

That definitely was a reply he didn't like. It sounded a lot like Dumbledore brushing things off that seemed inconsequential but only came back to bite him in the ass later. Still, Urahara was helping him for now so there was little he could say to oppose the man. Instead he was told to rest and wait for his reserves to charge back up again before they would continue Harry's Kidō training and his Cero training as well.

He had only shot it off once now and considering the widespread destruction it had caused, he wasn't sure he wanted to continue delving into it. The power rush it had given him though, that had been amazing. His entire body had tingled for a while with satisfaction while the Kidō almost felt foreign as it flowed through him. Perhaps that was because it was a Shinigami skill that he wasn't supposed to have. True enough the only reason he could imagine for being able to wield it was his magic.

Magic certainly was a strange force to be able to pull off such changes in him and his abilities…

Speaking of which, he took out his own and his mother's trunks and started going through the library he had managed to gather in one night. Luckily his mom's trunk was set up perfectly for such a thing though complete with shelves and everything.

He disappeared into it, leaving a note behind saying where he was, and started making out everything she had gathered before putting them in decent order. There were muggle books, which he set aside for their own shelf, and a lot of magic books, some of which he knew were about outlawed magicks in Britain. Blood magic and Necromancy were at the top of that list…

She really had a lot of interesting topics though, right along with a large collection on his most hated subject. She had liked potions? Why? To him it was a horrid form of magic as, while it had a lot of potential, was very dangerous and seemingly without much logic at all.

"Might as well look through what's in here though. I do need to take my NEWTs eventually…"

With that he sat down and found himself absorbed for several hours. Who knew potions could be so interesting?

* * *

When dinner came around, the table found itself under a cloud of somewhat tense anticipation.

"Harry-kun, I've been speaking with a friend of mine and since I'm going to be busy for the next few days he's agreed to take over your training for a while." Urahara began when they were nearly finished eating. Talk about unexpected…

"Really, who is it?" Not that a name would help much at all but if Urahara was going to be busy then having someone else's help might do him some good. Urahara was good at training him with his magic, giving the right pointers and all that, but had told him that without Harry bearing a weapon there was little he could do.

"Shinji Hirako is a good friend of mine and what we call a Visored. He had his friends are able to use Hollow powers through a mask they can summon, though they are former shinigami. It resembles the Arrancar's powers but it is certainly different. I believe he'll be a good teacher for you. He has already agreed to help you get along until I'm back."

Harry simply nodded, deciding to take things as they went.

"I'll be with him the entire time then?"

"Yes, he has a training room similar to my own and you will be with him there. I have asked to keep you a secret from the others though, as the more people know about your situation, the more danger you could be in."

Well, that made sense at least, though he was curious about meeting more than one Visored. No point moping about it though, he knew that he was going to be in deep trouble if he didn't master his powers before the Shinigami found out about him. It had to be done before their troubles were over. They would notice the difference in spiritual signatures on earth after that, similar to magical signatures actually.

He was a unique creature after all.

Harry spent a long time musing about what he would learn with this Shinji person and what that would do for the development of his powers. He knew he wasn't ready just yet, though ready for what remained the question. His mask needed to be completed, somehow, and he would need his sword, Zanpakuto was what Urahara called it. Regardless, he knew he needed that weapon to complete his powers and his form. He didn't know what would follow that, but he'd find out when push comes to shove.

Shinji was a humanoid Hollow like him but he'd been forewarned that the other was nothing like him and held no real magic, just Kidō, and while Harry viewed it as a powerful technique, it didn't hold a candle to what real magic could do. Shinji had been a shinigami before experiments turned him into a Visored so he already had his zanpakuto from those times as well, so what was Harry supposed to learn from him?

* * *

When Harry found himself in front of an old warehouse he was certain he was at the wrong address, or he would have thought so had he not sensed the Kidō barriers around the place. He sensed magic easily now, since the Shinigami skill was more difficult to sense. If he could find those wards, he knew he could find magical ones as well. He shook the thought away quickly though, knowing he needed to focus on his Hollow powers again for the time being. His magical prowess could wait.

"Yo! So yer Harry Potter, eh? Kisuke told me 'bout ya; yer quite special if what I hear's true." Shinji was hovering on air a little while away and looking at Harry with his head cocked slightly to the side. He seemed to be evaluating Harry by the feel of his reiatsu, like Harry would do to other people by the feel of their magic. He knew Urahara had already told the other his limits, since he was certain the device had something to do with that, as well as all the running. Urahara had hinted that it had something to do with his reiatsu so he had done as asked of him, as exhausting as it had ended up being.

"Well, no time to lose then!" The blond said, abruptly clapping his hands before Harry could even say a word. The ground before him opened up to reveal a staircase down to a room uncannily similar to Urahara's, though it held a few damages. It had obviously been used recently… The trip down was a little eerie since there were no lights at all but he managed not to trip over anything until they reached the room.

A fight had definitely broken out here if the pieces of broken rock and the chasms in the ground were anything to go by. Maybe they had been having a training session on their own before?

"Ah, don' worry about that. We jus' trained someone else before you but he needed to get his Hollow under control. Seems to me you're a lot different so the same tactics won't apply. What can ya actually do?" Shinji asked, walking ahead a little to face Harry. Being technically a born Hollow meant he needed to devise an entirely new strategy and figure out what he could work with.

Ichigo had been forced to fight his inner Hollow and master it and that, while it had been a struggle, was relatively easy. Harry, on the other hand, didn't have the same experiences as he was a wizard instead of a shinigami before becoming a Hollow. All in all, he wasn't sure what to do with the boy, but they were going to figure something out for sure.

"I have the Vacío I can summon, I'm sure they can help me in fights and I can fire off my Cero as well as a bunch of Kidō which I've trained in with Urahara-san." He replied slowly. He knew that the last two were things he could accomplish. He had never actually seen the Vacío in action and didn't know if they had any special powers, not to mention he knew his speed needed a lot of work, considering Urahara was fast as lightning and he was sure Shinji possessed the same abilities.

Shinji nodded, taking in the boy's posture and the way he seemed to fold in on himself during scrutiny; that wouldn't do at all. This kid needed to grow a backbone if he was to defend himself against the Shinigami and other people that could come after him.

"Alright, we'll work with what we've got then. We'll have yer pets out soon enough but I want a decent lap around the place first eh? Lets see how fast you are." If what Urahara said was true then Harry hadn't learnt shunpo or sonído yet, meaning they needed to improve on that as fast as possible. How was this kid going to be able to defend himself if he couldn't even see where the blows came from, right?

To his pleasant surprise there was not a single word of complaint from the raven-haired boy, instead he received a nod and watched the kid start running. The generally human pace of it almost made Shinji groan. If the kid was at human-level speed they were going to be here for a long time…

As he continued watching the boy and staying close enough to look for signs of exhaustion he started noticing the boy's speed was picking up, little by little. Of course he was still slow but he was nearing a low-level shunpo at least, which was good. A good thirty minutes later they were back at their starting point and it wasn't too hard to see the kid was tiring.

"Not bad, kid. Ye've got a long way to go still but so far you've got decent speed. The problem is the time it takes before you actually start getting anywhere near fast. Shunpo and sonído would look like teleportation to people like you 'cause it's too fast for ya to follow." To demonstrate he feigned going left before turning right into a sonído and appearing behind the lad.

He blinked, staring briefly at the boy when he realised Harry had been able to tell which way he was going and the curve he had taken to do it. With the level this kid was on there was no way he should've seen it.

Noticing Shinji's surprise Harry chuckled slightly. "I'm the youngest seeker of the century in a game we have called Quiddich. My job is to find a really fast ball throughout a game of flying. I'm used to tracking fast things." He was pretty proud of himself for having been able to follow Shinji's movements. He would almost have failed but he managed to keep up, somehow.

"Even then ya shouldn't have been able to keep track of that…" He frowned slightly and observed the boy for a moment before his eyes rested on the mask under the boy's skin. The fact Harry could command Kidō was odd in itself and should have been impossible in the first place and now again he was doing something he shouldn't have been able to. The boy's reiatsu kept fluctuating constantly as well, which it wasn't supposed to do at all.

Hang on...

What if Harry's problem was similar to Ichigo's after all? He was a Hollow after all, he should have been hungering for souls and his Hollow side should have been much more active, taking over whenever it had the chance; yet it hadn't happened. Was that why the boy's reiatsu felt unstable?

"Tell me kid, did you ever notice yer Hollow talking to ya?"

* * *

 **A/N: The end of this chapter, at long last! I know I've been busy and partially procrastinating but here it finally is. I hope it was worth the wait I don't know when I'll update next though considering the Convention is soon and I don't quite know how to run the training sessions. It's starting to form bit by bit though, so hopefully future training sessions won't take as darn long to be written.**

 **Thanks to everyone who reviewed, they're fuel to my writing fire so keep 'em coming! xD**

 **Until next time,**

 **Love,**  
 **~Lumina**


	15. And so We Continue - Training Part 3

**A/N: Welcome to chapter 15 and omg sorry it took so long! I've been busy but that's not really an excuse. I was procrastinating because training sessions are still a bitch to write and figure out. I managed to shorten them though, and figure out how to _not_ end up writing all the details. So far so good :)  
I'd like to thank everyone who reviewed and, as usual:**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

 ** _Ana:_ Well yes and no. Harry's case is different because he was alive before turning into a Hollow instead of being a Plus first, but I can't say more than that without revealing what I'm going to be writing in the chapters about that. ^^"**

* * *

"My Hollow talking to me?" He tilted his head in confusion, a small frown settling on his face. He'd never really thought of the Hollow as an entity instead of a power, or perhaps like a dormant animal but those couldn't talk either, could they? Or wasn't that what Shinji was getting at? Gah, talk about confusing!

Shinji sighed and looked the boy up and down again, wondering how the hell he was gonna explain this.

"Well, normally yer Hollow's instincts are to eat souls and battle for power, fighting against yer own mind an' rationality. That happened to most of us on varying levels of intensity. Ichigo-kun especially had a lot of trouble with it, since the moment he activated his mask he lost control. Inside his mindscape he could talk ta his Hollow though an' it was through fighting there that he managed ta control it."

As the other explained, Harry's frown deepened. The word 'instinct' definitely struck a chord but the rest of that was completely foreign to him…

"Can't it be that that hasn't happened to me because my mask hasn't fully formed though?" He tapped the skin around his eye, sighing softly at how cold and hard it felt— unnatural. _No, not unnatural_. There was that sense again! Instinct, right… Maybe those feelings he'd been having were actually—

Shinji snapped him out of his thoughts with a nod and a thoughtful hum. "Certainly, that's a possibility but we don't know that fer sure. Yer sure you've never heard anything from yer Hollow before then?" Jeez, how hard was Harry gonna make it to work around this, huh?

"Well…"

He raised a brow. _"Well?"_

"I did get random feelings… Well, not really random but every time I started thinking that maybe being like this is a bad thing, or a problem or something weird and unnatural there's always this feeling that tells me I'm wrong… That I should be glad I was given these powers, that I should use them and that I should be proud. Do you think that's my Hollow trying to communicate with me?" Harry looked up at the other despite the urge to look down as he would have in Britain.

Shinji simply grinned. "That's it! That's yer Hollow, yeah. But you've ne'er had control problems or stuff like that?"

"No sir, none." Oddly enough. From the way Shinji described it he was supposed to feel those kinds of things, having trouble controlling himself and such. Was this his magic interfering with the usual happenings? Come to think of it, Shinji and Ichigo and the others were all Shinigami before becoming Hollows; Visored. Their situation was very different from his own so there were bound to be some differences, even though this was really getting way out of hand. How was he supposed to train if they couldn't figure out _how_ to train him in the first place?

"Well, we can only be happy 'bout that, I s'ppose. Still, the best thing would be ta actually get that mask outta yer skin, I think. Dunno if you'll be able to remove it like we can though." Shinji mused. He and the other Visored were part Hollow, having overcome the transformation. Harry on the other hand had been alive when the transformation occurred and not only that but he had not overcome it in the least. More like he had fused with it, actually.

This was going to be one hell of a challenge, but… ' _It's a good thing I like a challenge, eh?'_

Shinji smirked briefly as he looked up to the 'sky'. What to do, what to do. They should definitely work on improving Harry's speed and reflexes but other than that the sole focus should be getting that mask out from under his skin. Since they didn't know how to do that yet, they might as well see just how many of the Hollows' powers Harry could control.

"Alright then, let's get back to work!"

* * *

The rest of the afternoon found Harry shooting Cero after Cero at targets Shinji raised, as well as practicing the lower-levelled Cero called Bala. It took him quite a few tries to get it right though since, just like at Hogwarts, he had a tendency to overpower his spells and therefor ended up with them exploding in his face more often than not. Once he managed it though, the entire process came more easily to him and he realised just how useful Bala actually was.

While his Cero was powerful and rather accurate, it took a lot of energy from him to shoot, and firing off multiple shots in a short amount of time tired him out too thoroughly to be useful. Bala on the other hand he could fire easily and without tiring because it only took a small amount of magic and reiatsu to achieve.

Magic and reiatsu though, that was another thing he struggled on. All of his skills here were a mash of his newly acquired reiatsu as well as his magic, meaning he needed to find a balance between the two, a point where they could both coincide. Something like that wasn't so easy to find but after a while, he got used to it. His magic and reiatsu still didn't mesh well but at least they could be bent to perform the few spells he had mastered, like his Bala. It also proved to tire him a little less and make his Cero and Kidō more powerful, when he added magic to the mix. Though of course, that was precedented by several explosions.

"Ya did pretty well today Harry." He grinned when he saw the boy's face light up at the praise. Looked like he didn't get much of that on average huh? Well, he had promised not to involve himself too much when it came to this kid, as Urahara said the boy wanted to keep his secrets close but that was fine to him. "How 'bout we switch to seeing what yer pets can do, huh?"

Harry nodded, realising he should hold off on more casting until he had had a little break at least and was ready to continue his training. At least now he knew what to do to improve himself. Some meditation tonight was bound to help as well. He had found a book on occlumency among his mother's things and found that it really helped him find his core and mindscape more easily. If he was there he might be able to find a way to let his powers flow together as one, rather than just leaving it an incompatible swirl of power…

"Vacío." He called calmly and smiled when the two appeared next to him, ready to defend their master from any danger. He ruffled their heads briefly, still somewhat amazed at how soft they were, considering no Hollow he knew of was like that. Menos and Gillians had rather stone-like skin and Arrancar had a technique to harden their skin as well, yet these two didn't have such a thing. That might become a problem if they were attacked and easily injured though. They would need the fortification.

Just as a thought that, a ripple passed over their skin and while their fur was still deceptively soft, the skin underneath it had hardened considerably. Harry could only grin as the Vacío looked up at him, almost looking both smug and proud, despite the fact they could neither smirk nor grin through their masks.

Shinji raised a brow as he watched the rippling effect pass over the Vacío's skin and slowly reached out. "May I?" After Harry nodded he slowly touched one of them, surprised at the hardness he knew hadn't been there moments before. You were able to tell their skin had been like that of a dog's before, yet now it retained its softness and was still hardened beneath.

The only thing he could currently deduce was that while they were there to protect Harry, that wasn't their only purpose. Why else would their base skin be so soft otherwise? He supposed a teenager as young as Harry would need all the support he could get right now. Harry was only sixteen after all. To someone like Shinji, such a number was nothing.

"Alright, let's see what they can do then…"

* * *

The next hour was spent with the Vacío showing off what they could do. They could shoot Bala just as Harry did now and were also able to perform sonído, unlike their owner. It was actually rather impressive that the Vacío were able to perform skills that Harry hadn't performed or mastered yet. They were also proven to be very durable and despite lacking a maw in their mask normally, when they were in what they would come to call 'battle mode' their mask transformed to accommodate and their new teeth were razor-sharp.

While the Vacío were showing off, Harry wasn't paying attention to _what_ they were doing as much as _how_ they were doing it. He was connected to them so he could feel how their reiatsu and magic dispersed and moved to accommodate to the skills they were performing. When they once more used sonído to stand beside their master, Shinji turned to find the boy completely lost in concentration. When the boy moved though, it was at half the speed required for sonído and shunpo.

"How'd ya do that?" he found himself asking, since this morning Harry hadn't been able to go quite so fast from standing still. It had taken him time before he was able to come even close to the required speeds, and yet now…

Harry looked at his teacher a little sheepishly and scratched the back of his neck.

"Well, I can feel the reiatsu and magic coming off the Vacío since I'm connected to them and I figured maybe if I made my own powers flow the way theirs did, I'd be able to get a better hang of it."

That was a remarkably smart idea, to follow the feeling of another's example… He hadn't quite thought of that, to be honest.

"Nice going there Harry." He grinned, ruffling the boy's already messy hair briefly.

Next Shinji offered them a dummy to practice on. A moving one, to be precise. The dummy would help Harry learn dodging and such as well as give the boy some help with aiming at moving things. Surprisingly, shooting moving things out of the air was no problem for the boy, not even at higher speeds. He hadn't set it to shunpo levels yet but still, it was remarkable that someone so young had such good hand-eye coordination.

When the Vacío next attacked three large slash marks lit up in the air and raced at the target, indeed slicing it into pieces. Which was impressive since the dummy had been very well reinforced and made out of compressed reishi… Still, he didn't think they'd be able to get much done at this rate. They needed to get Harry more in touch with his Hollow and find a way to finally expose the mask fully.

The process was going far too slowly and while Harry was progressing well and quickly, it wasn't enough. They had limited time before someone from the boy's home tracked him down and tried to hurt him. Magic didn't seem to work to hide the mask so there was no way for the boy to actually hide properly… Poor kid, what a mess.

As a second dummy began attacking the boy, he thought about the possibilities. They needed to put Harry up against something more real but still not dangerous enough to kill him easily. Perhaps making him fight a simple Gillian should bring him the experience and power-ups he needed. He didn't know too much about Hollows fighting each other but since such things were normal in the hierarchy, he supposed it would be a good start. He deactivated the dummy and called Harry over.

"Alright. Yer doin' good but at this rate ya won't be able to get yer mask out and make the full change so I was thinking maybe ya should fight something more realistic. Karakura's always crawling with Gillians. You feel up to fightin' one? I'll be there ta help ya out if ya need it though." He was fairly confident that Harry could handle this, though really anything was guesswork at this point. Still, Harry was faster than the Gillians in Karakura at this point and he should be able to deal a fair bit of damage.

Harry wasn't too sure about fighting a real target so soon but since Shinji and the Vacío would be there to have his back should he need it, he supposed he would be fine…

"Alright, let's do it."

Shinji was rather proud of how determined the boy could be, getting over things that made him worried or scared fairly easily, always ready to do what was right. He supposed that was children's innocence for ya. Though he could only wonder how long it would last before that was shattered. The world was never kind after all, it never had been.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later found them on one of the rooftops in Karakura, looking for a Gillian or two to fight. Considering where they were, their wish was granted pretty quickly as a Hollow's roar echoed to their right. Harry had always thought of it as a scream but now that he was more in tune with his powers, he knew that that wasn't the case. Before he knew it he found himself running towards the sound, using sonído to move about more easily from one rooftop to the other until he reached his opponent.

Bloody hell, no one said they were going to be _that_ big!

He sensed Shinji behind him and nodded, steeling himself for the battle that was bound to come. He took a deep breath and fed the Vacío some of his magic, feeling them grow in size beside him. "Let's get this over with." He mumbled to them before vaulting off the building, shooting a few successive Bala right at the Gillian's mask. He knew now that that was a Hollow's weak point, which meant he would be protecting his own thoroughly.

The Hollow roared again and tried to squash Harry, who managed to get out from under the swipe with a quick sonído. He could've sworn he had been faster this time but he couldn't quite tell, considering he was a little busy at the moment. He jumped back as the Vacío landed their slashes and Bala all over the Hollow. Meanwhile, he raised his hand, placing the other on his wrist as he focussed on the magic and reiatsu needed for this spell.

" _Ye lord! Mask of flesh and bone, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Truth and temperance, upon this sinless wall of dreams unleash but slightly the wrath of your claws._ Hadō #33. Sōkatsui!"

The power from his hand exploded towards the Hollow, which the Vacío had kept suitably distracted. The blast of blue fire shot at his opponent like a wave but it had noticed him during the incantation and so managed to move out of the way, partially. The blast did cause it to lose an arm and part of its leg though. The Gillian let out a chilling scream of rage and pain.

Harry steeled himself with a deep breath and began zigzagging using sonído to keep the Hollow from hitting him before he jumped atop one of the buildings and got ready to fire something else. If this didn't work then he was probably pretty screwed… He took a deep breath and readied himself in the same position as earlier but was a little startled to see the same red ball forming in the Hollow's camp. _Oh hell_.

He swallowed and steeled his magic to keep the Cero from exploding before firing it seconds before the Gillian did. He was rather surprised when he saw his Cero blatantly slashing through the Gillian's own Cero, destroying it and the Hollow's mask in quick succession. He hadn't quite expected that but he supposed it was the magic that gave it an extra edge…

He found himself jumping down and was suddenly no longer in control of his own movements. His eyes shone golden as he stretched his hand out and the dying Hollow began swirling into a dark blue ball, which he easily picked up and brought to his mouth. Had he been in control of himself he would never have done such a thing but a voice in his mind told him it was necessary and that voice had not been wrong yet so he might as accept what was happening, for now.

Once the soul was swallowed, he found himself just standing there, a little dazed. "Well that one was bitter…" His Hollow lamented softly before fading back into his consciousness. It was then that Harry crashed to his knees with a pained gasp. He could feel himself digesting the Hollow, it's powers spreading through him, reinforcing him and thinning the layers of skin above his mask.

He was breathing heavily when Shinji finally landed next to him, not having seen what happened due to the dust the Cero caused. "Ya okay there, Harry?"

He slowly looked up, a small golden sheen still over his eyes before it vanished. "Yeah sure, if you don't count the effects of eating another Hollow…"

Shinji definitely had to do a double take there… "You did _what_?!"


	16. Let's Change Things Up! - Hueco Mundo

**Hello folks and welcome to chapter 16! Finally moving along with the plot a little now. We'll be moving on to meet new people as well as get stuck in new situations at last and this is the base for it~ All your reviews have been majorly motivating me so thank you so much and don't stop! xD**

 **Enjoy!**

* * *

That night a very exhausted Harry dropped onto his futon. Not only had his Hollow's instincts decided to take over and go for a snack but he had spent a fairly long time listening to Shinji chewing him out for allowing it to happen. He still felt that conversationringing through his mind as he laid down on his back, exhaling. As his instincts had simply taken over, he hadn't known how much of a big deal this was but Shinji had explained it to him at least. Even so, a part of him, his Hollow side no doubt, still wanted to consume more... He had a feeling this might not end so well if he didn't get those instincts under control.

 _Shinji led Harry inside and motioned him to sit down. The boy was obviously still shaken up from the control his hollow had taken but there wasn't much he could do about that, currently. Once they were more or less comfortable he levelled the teenager with a look, even though the boy looked completely unaware of the gravity of the situation. That was really the thing that irked him the most, Harry didn't seem to have the slightest clue what he had done wrong!_

 _"Listen Harry, is is important. Ya can't just go 'round eatin' Hollows whenever ya feel like it." When Harry moved to interrupt, Shinji stopped him. "I understand that yer Hollow took over but that's no excuse. All of us 'ave fought with our Hollows an' have come out as victors. It's the only reason we're still alive right now. Doing things like that and losing yourself to your Hollow has a price, I need you to understand this."_

 _Still confused, all Harry had been able to do was nod, promising he would at least listen to what Shinji had to say, even though most of it meant nothing to him, considering he lacked a lot of information the former Shinigami most likely took as granted._

 _"It isn't the fact that ya ate a Hollow, Harry. To you, ya probably jus' killed it an' who cares about how it died, right?" When the boy cautiously nodded, he could only sigh and pinch the bridge of his nose as he looked for the right words to express himself with. When he did find the words, he explained calmly and slowly, hoping to get through to the boy. He had shown much promise and it would be such a waste to have to kill him simply because he was uneducated._

 _"There's a balance to all things, including souls. Kisuke wrote about this stuff so I'll lend ya a book about it later but right now we'll talk about what happens ter Hollows. When a Hollow consumes souls, those souls become trapped inside the Hollow and are in the process of being digested. If the Hollow is allowed to exist long enough, those souls will become part of the Hollow and become lost. if a Quincy kills the Hollow then it's basically the same story, the Hollow and souls within cease to exist."_

 _Harry was listening attentively now and Shinji's eyes shone with slight approval. He had a feeling the boy would be up reading all night to inform himself better on the topic._

 _"However, when a Shinigami purifies a Hollow with their Zanpakuto, the Hollow's original soul, as well as the souls of those it consumed, are judged and either sent to Soul Society or Hell, depending on their life prior to becoming a Hollow or being eaten. If a Hollow is eaten then just like with the Quincy, the souls within stop existing because you absorbed them with the Hollow you ate. Sure, it'll give ya a power boost and such, but you're ending the possibilities for several souls. Normally, when a soul goes to Soul Society, after a while they go back to the human world and become reincarnated. In essense, you've killed them permanently."_

 _Though he shouldn't be pleased by it, the look of dawning understanding and shock on Harry's face pleased him. It was good to see his words were getting through to the boy._

 _"So, whenever a Hollow gets eaten, not only that Hollow dies permanently, but the people it ate as well?" Harry swiftly ignored the part of him that told him it didn't matter and focussed instead on the disgust his human half was feeling. He hadn't cared that a Hollow might have been destroyed because it was a corrupted soul and in the end didn't seem to matter much. However, he had never signed up to become a murderer and he felt that was exactly what he had done when he realised he had ended the life of several souls in one fell swoop. It was right then and there that he promised himself he would never do such a thing again._

Harry turned onto his side and glanced at the book Shinji had given him. He was still wrapping his head around the fact he had killed, albeit indirectly and decided that maybe reading would be able to ease his frazzled mind. Indeed he stayed up most of the night as he read the book. Not only did it give a clear and easy to understand defnition of what Hell and Soul Society were but it also explained the soul cycle in itself and the reincarnation process, stating that depending on the state and fate of a soul, they could end up anywhere.

Souls that had committed only minor or even no sins at all were sent to Soul Society, where they awaited their next chance at life during reincarnation. However, 'bad souls' that had committed vicious and unforgivable crimes were sent straight to Hell. Often such souls became Hollows first though, and devoured other Plusses during their time as such a creature. Only when they were killed by another Hollow, a Shinigami, or a Quincy, did their journey really end.

When eaten by another Hollow, not only did that Hollow gain more power, but the souls that were contained inside the eaten Hollow were consumed and destroyed as well, incuding the original soul the Hollow was made out of. When killed by a Quincy, something similar happened. The Hollow simply ceases to exist, thus exterminating not only the corrupted soul, but also the souls inside. The same happens when the Hollow's instincts drive the main soul mad, turning it into a beast whose sole purpose is to devour souls. These beings are permanently destroyed no matter what, although when a Shinigami kills it, the souls inside are still returned to their cycles.

Once a Shinigami purifies a Hollow, by slicing its mask in two with their zanpakuto, the Hollow's soul is judged upon it's actions as a human. Then, the soul will either go to Soul Society or Hell, based on its actions. The souls the Hollow has consumed are freed and sent either to Soul Society or Hell, based on their actions as well. Each single soul goes through this process of judgement. When a soul has either spent the alotted time in Soul Society or has endured its punishment in Hell, it is sent back to the human world to reincarnate into a new person, beginning its life anew.

That was quite a bit to take in, to be honest. Of course, Urahara had gone into a bit more detail but that was the gist of it and it made him feel guilty to know he had ended such an important thing, even though he didn't really understand why the cycle worked the way it did. Would he end up in Hell one day for having eaten that Hollow? He shuddered at the thought and got ready for bed. It was already 5AM and he still had things to do tomorrow, though he hadn't realised it had gotten so late.

* * *

The next day Harry had been allowed to sleep in until noon, when Urahara had come to wake him up. He was still expected to train with Shinji of course and after a good brunch and a quick shower, he was ready to continue his training. Though not before apologising to both Shinji and Urahara for his actions the night before, as well as stating he understood what he had done now and would definitely work hard to control his Hollow and its desires.

Once that was all done with, Shinji simply grinned at him. "Ready fer today then Harry?"

Relieved that no one seemed angry with him and that they had both accepted his apologies, he nodded. "Yeah. So what are we going to do today?" He was quite curious, as the look on Shinji's face told him things were going to go a little differently from now on. Though how differently, only time would tell.

"Well, last night me 'n Urahara had a bit of a chat ya see, an' we decided maybe it's time for ya ta see what Hueco Mundo looks like. We can continue sword training there, it'll be a new experience so ta say. Besides, you need ta master hardening reiatsu in the air ta stand on too." He added before turning to a gateway that Urahahra had set up for them. It was only when Harry turned towards the gateway that he noticed someone else standing there.

"Ah right. This is Ushōda Hachigen, he's gonna help us set up the passage to Hueco Mundo. After that we can see if yer able ta make a Garganta or not." Shinji said, now standing on the other side of one big stone gate.

"Hachi is fine, young man." Hachigen said, smiling jovially. Harry was of mind to ask what the hell a Garganta was but suddenly the information came to him in the form of a mental image, painting the picture of a hole tearing into the fabric of the sky, allowing Hollows passage from Hueco Mundo to the human realm and he simply nodded.

"Alright, are we leaving now then?" Harry asked, eager to see what the fabled Hueco Mundo was like in person. He had never seen it before after all, only read about it. And even if it really didn't sound like much, he knew there was a fortress out there somewhere he could explore and wouldn't that be fun? He had no idea if there was a Hollow king out there but he supposed it would be kinda cool to meet someone like that.

On the other hand such a venture was likely to put him into a lot of danger and he knew he wasn't strong enough to fight for survival if he got that far. He felt reassured in the fact that Shinji would be with him and was very unlikely to leave him alone near any other Hollows anytime soon. Not only did that give him protection, but it also offered the chance to stop him should his instincts take over again, especially since the Hollow seemed more present in his mind ever since he had taken over, despite his occlumency shields, which he still tried to work on every night.

Shinji chuckled softly at Harry's eagerness but was still quite worried that something might go wrong if he took Harry there. Tey still didn't know how to control and subdue the Hollow to HArry's will after all. They needed to find a sollution for that, and fast. "Yeah, we'll be leavin' now. Hachi an' Urahara will be openin' the portal an' then we'll be going through it. They won't be able to keep it open for long though so we'd better hurry." Getting trapped in that tunnel with the Cleaner just around the corner was not preferable at all...

Harry nodded in understanding and watched as the Shinigami and Visard touched the gate and started feeding it reiryoku. Harry was a little surprised he could sense that at all since usually all he would notice was a bit of a light show but he shrugged it off, watching and feeling how the gate was made. However, he could feel instinctively that the portal was artificial and dangerous, a passageway that wasn't meant to be there. Which meant he apparently somehow knew how to make a Garganta now… Maybe his connection to his Hollow was growing stromger already? Who knows...

Anyway, he focussed back on the barrier and stepped inside the moment it was open, figuring the more of an early start they had, the better. He felt incredibly cold and a little compressed when he stepped inside but pushed through. This was nothing like the pressure from the Hogwarts wards and he was used to a lot more now. He quickly began moving forward, using sonído to speed up his advances and Shinji was beside him in moments. "C'mon, let's hurry before this collapses!"

Once on the other side of the gate, the two were quite relieved to find the cold sand under their shoes and Harry breathed in the reishi-filled air. It felt amazing being here, like the air was fresher and cleaner and that things were right and that everything else had felt wrong the whole time. He hadn't expected it to feel like this… The Vacío appeared beside him, surprisingly enlarged a little even though he had not done so himself.

 _'The reishi here is strong… Rich.'_  
 _'You are absorbing some of its powers master.'_  
 _'You will be able to sense reiryoku and magic better now...'_  
 _'You can consume it now to strengthen yourself.'_  
 _'You'll soon be ready master.'_  
 _'Finally.'_

And wasn't that just a shocker… He was absorbing the reishi in the air around him? It must be slow enough that it doesn't create a light show but this meant that his own reiryoku reserves would increase and the release of his mask would finally speed up… Great! The sooner his mask came free and he learned how to control his Hollow, the better, although he did wonder if other people could draw in little bits of reiryoku from the air as well. Still, he didn't think it would make a very big impact on him though. If he was lucky, it might help him increae his learning speed but he doubted it would be more than that.

They spent the morning practicing his katas before moving on to hardening reishi under your feet to stand on air, or fly as some people would call it. While it was proven that he could control the substance better than Ichigo could at least, he was still rather mediocre at it and found himself trying to sense just how the hell Shinji could do those things so easily, like it was nothing. He knew it had taken him practice as well but he'd had years to get used to it. Harry on the other hand...

Shinji snickered softly as he saw Harry sink through the air and lose his balance again. "Relax already Harry! You're not that high up and if you're too nervous you'll just keep losing focus and failing. Just believe in yourself." He knew he wasn't being very helpful but this was one of those sink or swim moments. Either you learn it or you don't. Spirits had a much easier time with it anyway, living beings however… It was impressive Harry could hold himself up like this already.

Harry rolled his eyes in Shinji's direction as he tried again. The man was utterly unhelpful, not that he wasn't used to such things though. At least Shinji usually explained himself so there was probably a good reason for his silence. He took a deep breath and focussed on the reishi in the air as well as his own reiryoku, sending some of it to his feet as if creating platforms directly under them. He had a feeling the small amounts of reiryoku wouldn't keep him up by themselves but adding in the reishi that already gravitated towards him…

He stumbled a little but found himself standing well enough, though the 'platforms' were still really weak and would likely shatter within mere moments. So he took a small step and recreated it, trying to get accustomed to the feeling of walking on reishi, because he certainly wasn't walking on air; that was for sure… He stumbled a moment again before catching himself lest he fell into the sand again. He didn't have a clue how long he had been practicing though, considering it was always night at Hueco Mundo, which didn't really make much sense to him at all. But oh well, not like he could change that, now could he? It certainly improved his night vision at least, making his eyes glow sometimes if he tried to see something further away.

Once balanced he took another step, and another, and another until he was more confident in being able to pull up the required reishi and reiryoku to keep him standing. At least he was able to walk now, more or less. He still wasn't completely stable but it was better than nothing. After that they moved on to sword fighing and that was how his days passed until he could use sonído in the air and not fall on his face.

* * *

 **A/N: Alright, for the people who are bound to be confused at my varying usage of Reishi, Reiryoku and Reiatsu(though I haven't used the latter in this chapter), here are some explanations:**

 **Reishi:** _(霊子, Spirit Particles) is the main component material of Souls and all spiritual matter. Reishi composes the spiritual bodies of Hollows and Shinigami, and the two planes of existence, Hueco Mundo and Soul Society in their entirety._  
 **Reiryoku:** _(霊力, Spiritual Power) is a power aligned with the spiritual sensitivity and willpower of the user. It is used by Shinigami and other spiritual beings to provide power for their various abilities._  
 **Reiatsu:** _(霊圧, Spiritual Pressure) is the physical force/pressure that a person's Reiryoku creates when released. Most Shinigami and Arrancar, even Quincy and Bounts can manipulate the release of their Reiatsu._


	17. Story Notice!

**Hello everyone!**

 **So yeah, I know I said temporary and that ended up being much more than temporary, whoops ^^"**

 **I got very attached to the storyline that I had planned out for this, which is why my motivation to write all but ran away when my foundation decided not to work anymore. I have rewritten chapter 16 to adhere better to the whole soul business, so you probably won't be seeing Raven again. Although I might be convinced to implement him in another way~**

 **I had plans for Harry's hollow transformations but due to the pacing of the story, that's not going to go well. But I'll figure something out to make it happen anyway. Suggestions, as always, are very welcome!**

 **While I haven't taken the story off of it's hiatus yet, it will _actually_ be temporary this time. I do have work and a very busy month going on right now so I don't know when I'll get around to writing the next chapter but  I won't be abandoning this story!**

 **Thank you to everyone who left reviews encouraging the story to get back on track, I really appreciate it. ^^**

 **Love,**

 **~Lumina**


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